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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23176489">Come Back, Be Here</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ddamaged/pseuds/ddamaged'>ddamaged</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Supergirl (TV 2015)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Humor, Married Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 15:08:54</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>99,110</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23176489</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ddamaged/pseuds/ddamaged</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Kara and Lena are happily married, but a year into their marriage, a tragic event forces one of the women to make a decision that causes the two of them to get separated from each other. Can the two find their way back to each other? Or will everything they worked so hard to build come crumbling down around them.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Alex Danvers/Maggie Sawyer, Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor, Lucy Lane/Nia Nal</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>146</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>431</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"I told you all we would have a music test today so let's cut the groaning, yeah?" The young blonde chuckles to herself.</p><p>"Yes, Mrs. Luthor-Danvers." A few of the students mutter. The teacher would be lying if she said hearing her hyphenated last name didn't make her heart jump out of her chest every time it graced her ears. Three years of dating and one year of marriage later and anything related to the green-eyed girl still makes her heart race.</p><p>Kara sits down at her desk after handing out the tests to her students and monitors the 7th graders sitting in front of her. A faint buzzing sound coming from her desk drawer catches her attention, but she doesn't make a move to reach for her phone because she knows that some of her students would take that as their cue to lean over and get answers from the person next to them. She would do the same thing in middle school as soon as her teacher looked away, but she is not having it in her own classroom.</p><p>The young teacher spends the next 30 minutes watching her students struggle and listening to them sigh. Her lips form a slight smirk at the dramatic students before her. They all act as if she has not been telling them they were having a test on this exact day for the last couple of weeks. In attempt to diminish her boredom, the blonde finds herself actually counting the number of sighs she hears. There is an average of about 5 a minute. She is about to count the next minute, but the abrupt opening of her classroom door breaks her from her thoughts and almost makes her fall out of her chair. Before she can get a word out to the culprit who is interrupting her class, the culprit who clearly overlooked the "do not disturb" sign on her door, she sees her favorite pair of green eyes staring into hers.</p><p>Her heart flutters for a second, but then she notices that something is off. She can tell the minute their eyes lock that something is wrong. Lena quietly walks over to her wife and starts to gather up her belongings. Kara opens her mouth to object.</p><p>"Lena, what are you doing?" She whispers as she watches the green-eyed woman stuff her purse and her cell phone into the bag with kittens on it that she retrieved from her shoulder. One that obviously belongs to Kara. She focuses her attention back on her students and they are all looking at her and Lena with furrowed eyebrows. The blonde knows that her own expression mirrors those of her students, but she doesn't know what to tell them. She is just as confused as they are.</p><p>"Come with me." Lena finally speaks up, her raspy voice laced with something that raises the hairs on Kara's arms. Fear. The green-eyed girl quickly slings the bag back over her shoulder and grabs her wife by the arm. A little too tightly for Kara's liking, but she is still too shocked and confused to speak up. Before Kara can protest, she is already standing in the empty hallway that smells like puberty and gym bags. Lena finally lets go of her arm and continues to walk to the end of the hallway toward the door, but Kara doesn't take a step forward. Her eyes continuously dart between her wife and the door to her classroom.</p><p>As soon as the green-eyed girl realizes her wife isn't following her, she spins around and crosses her arms. "Kara, c'mon." Lena runs her fingers through her hair and sighs.</p><p>"Babe, I'm teaching. I'll get fired if I just leave." Kara whispers as she places her hand back on the doorknob. She watches the green-eyed girl's eyes soften as she makes her way back to her wife.</p><p>"I know, baby, but it's an emergency, okay? We have to go. I'll explain everything in the car." Lena states calmly as she gently tucks a strand of blonde hair behind Kara's ear.</p><p>"No explain now, Lena. This is my job we are talking about." The teacher crosses her arms hastily. Lena just huffs and in one swift motion she slings her wife over her shoulder and starts to make her way to the exit at the end of the hallway.</p><p>"Lena! Put me down!" The blonde bangs her fists into her wife's back, but stops after Lena makes no move to put her back on her own two feet. When the older girl finally reaches the passenger side of her black BMW, she puts the blue-eyed girl down and opens the door, effectively trapping the still frazzled girl between herself and the car door. Lena raises one of her perfectly sculpted eyebrows and patiently waits for her stubborn wife to get in the car. Lena usually finds the blue-eyed girl's stubbornness amusing, but today she is too worried to even be the slightest bit amused.</p><p>"Get in." Lena states sternly. Kara opens her mouth to protest, but Lena beats her to it. "Now, Kara." Lena isn't usually this stern with her wife, but her protective nature is taking over. Kara searches her wife's eyes for some clue as to what is going on. "Fucking hell Kara get in the fucking car right fucking now." Lena grits her teeth and Kara finally surrenders after Lena starts cursing at her, which she despises. The young teacher knows its serious because Lena rarely ever curses at her because she knows Kara hates it. It's so rare that Kara can only pinpoint one other time that she remembers Lena doing it.</p><p>Senior year of college.</p><p>The two had gotten into a heated argument and Kara stormed out of Lena's apartment in search of the nearest bar. She managed to get drunk off her ass and Lena found her and tried to get her to leave the bar. Kara argued and yelled while Lena just listened and tried to keep Kara from falling off the bar stool. The two went back and forth for a solid half hour, with an occasional butt in from the bartender, which angered Lena to no end. It went on and on, Kara trying to convince the bartender to pour her another drink and Lena telling him she will break his fingers if he does. It only ended when Lena cursed at Kara, which managed to sober the girl up very quickly.</p><p>The young blonde runs her fingers through her curls and lets out an exasperated sigh before sliding into the BMW. Lena lets out a breath she didn't even know she was holding and the young teacher does the same because it's official...</p><p>She's so fired.</p><p>Lena slides in the driver's seat and cranks up the car. She backs out of the parking spot quickly and drives away from the school. When they make it on the road, Lena reaches over and interlaces her hand with her wife's. She brings their hands up to her red lips and places a tender kiss on the back of the hand that fits perfectly in hers.</p><p>Kara smiles, momentarily forgetting about the predicament she is in. "What's going on, Lee?" She finally speaks up.</p><p>Lena tenses and sets their intertwined hands in her own lap. "You remember that bombing in Rome that happened yesterday?"</p><p>Kara nods her head.</p><p>"Well there's been a terrorist attack in Florence and everyone is suspecting that Venice will be next. About 100 were killed today and I don't know if they will come here, but after what happened in Florence, I'm not taking any chances." Lena feels Kara tighten her grip on her hand and she absentmindedly rubs her thumb over the back of the now clammy hand that is tightly gripping hers. "I've been texting and calling for the past hour trying to get in touch with you, but I couldn't. Then I remembered you were giving a test and wouldn't answer so I left work and drove to get you."</p><p>Kara starts to ask where they are headed, but then Lena takes the exit that leads to the airport. "Babe, I doubt we can get a seat on an airplane, let alone two. You know everyone will be panicking and trying to buy tickets." Kara studies her wife's features and watches Lena's mouth tug upwards into one of her signature smirks.</p><p>"You forget I have connections. Don't underestimate me, Danvers." Lena takes her eyes off the road for a second and locks them with the baby blue ones beside her. She offers Kara a wink before turning her attention back to the road before them. Kara's heart flutters, just like it always does when it's around Lena.</p><p>"That's Luthor-Danvers to you." The young teacher teases back, trying to lighten the mood in attempt to stop her hands from pouring sweat.</p><p>They finally pull up to the airport and Lena jumps out as soon as she brings the car to a stop. She retrieves the kitten patterned bag that belongs to her wife and the suitcase from the trunk. She can't help but feel grateful that their house is between her work and Kara's school so she was able to stop by and throw some clothes and necessities into the bag and suitcase.</p><p>Lena hands the kitten patterned bag to it's rightful owner and rolls the suitcase behind her. She takes her wife's hand in hers and gives it a gentle squeeze. The airport is as Kara thought it would be: packed. The trembling blonde follows her wife as they make their way through the airport.</p><p>After quickly making their way through security, Lena's eyes scan the signs up above their heads for directions on how to get them to Gate 113. A couple of turns later and they are finally standing at the gate that Lena was told to go to. She asks Kara to stay back with their belongings as she makes her way up to the front desk. A younger brunette in a vest and tie looks up at her and offers her a somewhat wavering smile. </p><p>"My name is Lena. Lena Luthor-Danvers. I'm a friend of Sam's." She states while wiping the sweat, that is accumulating on her palms, on her dress pants.</p><p>She intently watches the lady before her scan her eyes across the computer screen. "Ah yes. She called a little while ago. Your plane boards in 5 minutes. Did Sam tell you the predicament?" The woman's eyes flicker to the blonde guarding the bags.</p><p>Lena's heart sinks even further to her stomach and she swallows the lump that has set up camp in her dry throat. "Yeah." The woman sighs and offers the brunette in front of her a slight nod. "Did she tell you the plan?"</p><p>"Mhmm. Everyone on the staff knows so you're good." The woman hands her the boarding passes and Lena thanks her before making her way back to the sitting blonde who is nervously bouncing her left leg up and down. She stuffs the envelope with her name on it in the front pocket of her jacket and squats down in front of the blue-eyed girl who holds her heart. She sets Kara's envelope on her lap while placing her own hand on her wife's knee, to attempt to stop the bouncing, and the other on her cheek. Lena's thumb caresses the soft skin beneath it and she watches as Kara's eyes flutter closed.</p><p>"Everything's going to be okay." The green-eyed girl promises. She's not sure if she's trying to convince Kara or herself though. Kara nods and leans into her wife's touch. Lena's heart soars and breaks all at the same time.</p><p>"I love you, darling." Lena smiles lovingly at her beautiful wife. "So much."</p><p>"I love you too, Lee." Kara responds, her eyes looking adoringly into her favorite pair of green eyes. The blonde quickly closes the gap between the two of them and captures her wife's lips in hers. She brings her hand up in between them and rests it on Lena's cheek, her thumb stroking the porcelain skin beneath it. The kisses they share are soft, yet filled with so much emotion. The green eyed girl swipes her tongue across Kara's bottom lip and the younger girl grants her wife access to explore the familiar territory. Lena breaks the kiss when a voice comes over the intercom and announces that their flight is boarding.</p><p>"That's us." Lena stares into the blue orbs that she loves so dearly while trying to memorize every aspect of them. Like how they look so tenderly at her and how the light reflects off of them and brings out the specs of gold in her irises. She leans in and plants another quick kiss on Kara's soft lips before slowly standing to her feet and pulling her wife up with her.</p><p>Lena places her hand on Kara's lower back as they make their way to the boarding entrance. Kara hands her pass to the man and then walks a little ways down the ramp in order to give Lena room to scan her boarding pass. Lena hands hers next and the man looks up at her knowingly. His lips form a sad smile as he hands the green-eyed girl her boarding pass back. She offers him a nod and walks down the ramp to where her wife is waiting patiently. Lena urgently reaches for Kara's hand and leads them the rest of the way down the ramp to the entrance of the airplane, her heart beating faster with every step she takes.</p><p>On cue, Lena hears a voice call to her. "Miss!" The man yells after her and she turns around, as does Kara. "Your boarding pass didn't scan properly. Can you please come back out here so I can re-scan it?"</p><p>Lena feels Kara tighten her grip around her hand and the brunette turns to her wife. "I'll be right back, okay?" She offers the handle of the suitcase to Kara. "Go ahead and get situated and everything. I'll see you soon." She bites the inside of her cheek in attempt to draw blood. A sick attempt to stop herself from crying. An even sicker attempt to inflict pain on herself as punishment for the pain that she is about to cause Kara.</p><p>"Hurry back, Lee. I'm tired and I need a shoulder to sleep on." Kara quickly leans in and places a gentle kiss on the green-eyed girl's lips. Lena tilts her head to deepen the kiss, in attempt to prolong it as much as she can. The man behind her clears his throat and Kara pulls away before Lena can protest.</p><p>Lena momentarily intertwines their hands and leans in to place a quick kiss on her wife's nose. "Love you, baby."</p><p>Kara giggles and returns the gesture. "Back at ya, green eyes."</p><p>Lena reluctantly retracts her hand and follows the man back up the ramp. She turns around one last time in hopes to catch one more glimpse of her beautiful wife. The older girl watches as Kara steps onto the plane. A light chuckle escapes her lips as she watches the girl struggle to get the suitcase over a crack. The chuckle turns into a sob as soon as Kara vanishes from her sight. She finally allows the tears to spill over the rims of her eyes and race down her cheeks.</p><p>There was only room for one on the plane. When Lena called Sam, she did the best she could, but everything was already booked up. Lena blamed herself. If she had just turned on the television sooner or just walked out of her office sooner, she would have seen the sheer panic. If she hadn't been so consumed in her work then maybe she would be on the plane with her wife right now, listening to her soft snores while she slept on Lena's shoulder.</p><p>When Sam informed her that she could only get one, she knew she'd get her wife on that plane no matter what it took. Sam helped her devise the plan and told her that she informed the flight attendants and pilot to not stop the plane or let Kara off no matter how much she pleaded or begged. </p><p>Apparently it was a damn good plan because the plane with the love of her life on it just tore away from the boarding ramp, effectively tearing Lena's heart out of her chest.</p><p>The brunette manages to drag her body back off the ramp and to the window overlooking the runway. She studies the plane as it slowly drives by the window that she is standing at. Her eyes scan each of the round windows of the plane until they finally land on her favorite blonde.</p><p>Even from this far, she can see Kara's tiny fists desperately banging on the circular window. Lena allows another sob to escape her red stained lips as she watches her wife try to shatter the glass that separates the two of them.</p><p>The glass may not be shattering, but Lena's heart sure is.</p><p>Pieces that she knows Kara will only be able to put back together when they reunite. If they reunite.</p><p>She places her shaky palm on the glass in front of her as the fresh tears trailing down her cheeks hit her already damp shirt. The green-eyed girl watches Kara mimic her action as she places her palm on the small window in front of her that she was trying to shatter just a second ago.</p><p>Moments later, the plane takes off down the runway and Lena's whole world comes crumbling down around her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>1 year later...<br/>
______________</p><p>Lena rushes through the National City airport with her luggage in tow. Today she is finally going to be reunited with her wife.</p><p>At least she hopes so.</p><p>The attack did happen and when it did, Lena realized that the news had it all wrong. It was not terrorist threat, it was a promise. Lena's assistant, Jess, has a basement in her house and so Lena drove to her house immediately after she watched Kara's plane take off. Lena knew the minute the first attack happened that she was right to get Kara on that plane and to safety. That didn't mean it hurt any less though.</p><p>Luckily, the attack was nothing too severe, but the main things in the city that were damaged were the only things that could reunite her with her wife: the airport and many other ports. In the cities next to theirs, everything was almost obliterated. Sam had called Lena a couple of hours later to inform her that Kara's plane had landed safely in National City.</p><p>After the attack, Lena tried every single day to get to Kara, but during the attack all modes of transportation were destroyed. Not only did she have to wait for the new airport to be built, but she had to wait for more planes to arrive as well. Even then, there was a waiting list to get on a plane. Even though Lena was at the top of the list because everyone in the city knew her, it was still a relatively long process. Eventually she got a plane ticket and she was ecstatic about that, but it still crushed her every time she remembered that when she arrives at the airport, her wife will not be there waiting for her.</p><p>The green-eyed girl tried every day for a year to get a hold of her wife, but she was not able to. Every time she called the number that used to belong to Kara, a man picked up and told her she had the wrong number. She still doesn't know why her wife never tried to contact her. Even if Kara lost her phone, Lena knew she had her number memorized. Every single day for the past year, Lena had to wonder if Kara hated her for what she did or worse, if Kara was even okay.</p><p>The brunette exits the airport and breathes in the familiar National City air. It's been two years since she was last here. Lena left the United States with Kara two years ago and she has not returned until today. The slight rain hitting the top of her head snaps her out of her thoughts and she hails a taxi and has the taxi drop her off at the closest school to the airport. All day, Lena goes down her list of schools in the National City area in search of her wife. She knows Kara loves her job, so she figures her wife got another job teaching music at one of the schools here in National City. Unfortunately, no one by the name of Kara Danvers or Kara Danvers-Luthor is employed at any of the schools Lena goes to.</p><p>After a long and incredibly exhausting day of searching, Lena retires to her favorite bar. She orders a whiskey neat and then grabs a napkin and a pen from the bartender and starts writing down places that her wife could be.</p><p>Bookstore</p><p>Music store</p><p>Stilton Pizza</p><p>Noonan's</p><p>Kara and Lena spent their time together at all of those places so those would definitely be the first places that she'd look. Kara absolutely adores books, music, coffee, and just food in general. However, Lena doesn't really think that 80% cream and 20% espresso should even be considered coffee, but Kara always labelled it as such.</p><p>"You here for the live music?" Lena raises her head up when she sees someone sit on the bar stool next to her. She's beautiful. She has dark hair and sweet smile. The sweater she's wearing reminds her of something Kara would wear and she smiles briefly at the thought.</p><p>Lena realizes she should speak up, even if she doesn't want company. "No." She shakes her head and returns to her list. The green-eyed girl is really in no mood for small talk. The only person she even wants to see right now, she can't find.</p><p>"You should stay, she's amazing. The best in town." The girl assures the green-eyed brunette next to her.</p><p>"Look." Lena sets her pen down and spins on the stool to face the girl next to her. She holds her left hand out in front of the two of them. "I'm married and I'm looking for my wife so I'm really not interested. I'm sorry."</p><p>The girl chuckles as she takes Lena's hand to admire the ring. "Beautiful ring. I actually have one of those too." She raises her hand up as well and Lena's eyes widen when she sees the diamond on the girl's finger. Lena silently curses herself for being so unnecessarily rude to the poor girl.</p><p>"I feel like such a jackass. I'm sorry." Lena runs her fingers through her hair and offers the girl to her right an apologetic smile.</p><p>"It's perfectly fine. You seem stressed so I won't hold it against you. I hope you find your wife." She extends her right hand and dangles it between the two of them. "I'm Nia, by the way."</p><p>Nia. Lena's heard that name before. But from where?</p><p>The green-eyed girl quickly takes the awaiting hand in hers and shakes it. "Lena." She smiles before taking another sip of her whiskey and picking up the pen so she can finish her task. She hears the faint sound of the strumming of a guitar, but she tunes it out as she studies the napkin in front of her, trying to decide where she should look next.</p><p>"She's starting." Nia claps as she turns to face the small makeshift stage at the back of the bar. Lena takes another sip of her drink and as soon as she does, a familiar voice fills her ears, one that she would recognize from anywhere. The green-eyed girl chokes on the mouthful of whiskey and grimaces as it slides down the wrong way. This gets Nia's attention and she swivels back around to check on the girl beside her.</p><p>Lena just offers a thumbs up showing that she will be okay. When she finally gets her coughing under control, she spins around in her bar stool so quickly that she almost falls off of it. She vaguely hears the girl next to her ask if everything is okay, but she doesn't answer. She is too busy taking in every detail of the blonde sitting on a bar stool on the stage 20 feet from where she is sitting.</p><p>The young teacher is wearing a light pink cropped sweater and dark jeans. Her blonde hair is pulled back in a messy bun and she has a content grin on her face as she looks out into the audience. Lena's heart is beating so fast that she swears Nia can feel the vibrations of it from where she's sitting. The green-eyed girl wants nothing more than to just rush on stage and take her favorite blonde into her arms and never let her go, but she doesn't want to overstep her boundaries. A lot can change in a year. She knows that.</p><p>Her thoughts are interrupted when she feels a hand cover her own, the one gripping the bar stool under her with so much force that her knuckles are turning white. "Are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost." Nia questions as she takes in the appearance of the green-eyed girl sitting next to her. She's worried that if she grips the bar stool any tighter she's going to break it.</p><p>"I have." Lena whispers as she tears her eyes away from the hand on top of hers and focuses her attention back on the most beautiful girl in the room. Her wife.</p><p>"She's pretty, huh?" Nia smirks at the visibly shaken girl next to her. Kara seems to have this effect on a lot of people, men and women. However, Nia can tell by the way Lena is looking at Kara that there's something more there than just physical attraction.</p><p>"Perfect, as always." Lena answers as she watches Kara position her mouth in front of the microphone again. Her voice fills Lena's ears for the second time today and Lena is worried that her heart is about to explode.</p><p>"So this is a song I wrote a couple of months ago. It's called 'Everything Has Changed.' Hope you enjoy it." Kara addresses the audience for a brief moment before refocusing her attention back on her guitar and strumming the familiar chords.</p><p>All I knew this morning when I woke<br/>
Is I know something now, know something now I didn't before<br/>
And all I've seen since eighteen hours ago is green eyes and freckles<br/>
And your smile in the back of my mind making me feel like<br/>
I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now<br/>
I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now<br/>
I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now<br/>
I just want to know you, know you, know you</p><p>Lena's heart soars when she hears the mention of green eyes and a small smile tugs at her red lips. She watches how Kara mindlessly takes her lip into her mouth as she strums the guitar that she is balancing in her lap.</p><p>'Cause all I know is we said hello<br/>
And your eyes look like coming home<br/>
All I know is a simple name, everything has changed<br/>
All I know is you held the door<br/>
You'll be mine and I'll be yours<br/>
All I know since yesterday is everything has changed</p><p>And all my walls stood tall painted blue<br/>
But I'll take 'em down, take 'em down and open up the door for you</p><p>And all I feel in my stomach is butterflies the beautiful kind<br/>
Making up for lost time, taking flight, making me feel like</p><p>Lena is completely blown away, but not at Kara's voice. She always knew her wife could sing like an angel. The blue-eyed girl would sing in the car, the shower, while she was putting her make up on. Really any chance she got. Every single time she did, the green-eyed girl would stop what she was doing and listen. Lena's always been her biggest fan. However, today, Lena is blown away because Kara would never sing for anyone, but her. She always encouraged Kara to do these kinds of gigs, but Kara would never agree to the idea. She always assured Lena that if she ever got on stage, she would pull an Aubrey from Pitch Perfect and puke all over the stage and everyone sitting near it.</p><p>I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now<br/>
I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now<br/>
I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now<br/>
I just want to know you, know you, know you</p><p>'Cause all I know is we said hello<br/>
And your eyes look like coming home<br/>
All I know is a simple name, everything has changed<br/>
All I know is you held the door<br/>
You'll be mine and I'll be yours<br/>
All I know since yesterday is everything has changed</p><p>Come back and tell me why<br/>
I'm feeling like I've missed you all this time<br/>
And meet me there tonight<br/>
And let me know that it's not all in my mind</p><p>She wipes a tear that has managed to escape from her eye after hearing the bridge. That part hit Lena hard because she has been missing the girl sitting in front of her for the past year. Her body is overcome with so much relief that Kara is okay though. However, she can't help but think that the girl singing right now is not the same girl she watched fly away from her a year ago.</p><p>All I know is we said hello<br/>
So dust off your highest hopes<br/>
All I know is pouring rain<br/>
And everything has changed<br/>
All I know is a new found grace<br/>
All my days, I'll know your face<br/>
All I know since yesterday is everything has changed</p><p>Kara strums the last note on her guitar and Lena, along with everyone else in the bar, jumps to her feet and starts clapping like a proud mom. A small smile tugs at her lips as she thinks back to the times when Kara would play a new song that she had wrote for her. Lena would always put her hand over her heart and dramatically voice that she was a proud mom after the song was over. Kara would always smirk and say "proud daddy, maybe." The green-eyed girl would always blush furiously and slap Kara's arm. Her wife would always call her daddy to get under her skin and she hated it. However, at this moment, she is sure that Kara could call her that and she would just kiss the smirk off her face.</p><p>The green-eyed girl slowly stands from her bar stool and makes her way to the stage at the back of the bar. Her shaking legs are making walking an extremely difficult task though. Lena stops within 5 feet of the stage and wipes her sweaty palms on her jeans as she watches Kara pack up her belongings.</p><p>What if she doesn't forgive her? What if she hates her for what she did?</p><p>Lena doesn't think she can move and she sure as hell cannot form a coherent sentence. She takes a shaky breath and then lets the familiar name fall from her lips.</p><p>"Kara."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As soon as blue eyes meet green eyes, Lena lunges forward and takes the girl into her arms.</p><p>Lena expected a lot.</p><p>She expected Kara to me mad.</p><p>She expected Kara to scream at her.</p><p>But she never expected what happened next.</p><p>The blue-eyed girl shoves Lena back as hard as she can and the distance she puts between them finally gives Lena a chance to see that the blue eyes that she loves so much are not familiar and warm anymore. The woman watches as her wife starts to retreat away from her until her back hits the wall of the bar. Lena watches as the blonde sinks to the floor and curls herself into a small ball. The green-eyed girl faintly hears the sound of gasping noises start to fill the air.</p><p>Is she... hyperventilating? Lena thinks as she takes in the girl's smaller form.</p><p>Kara’s eyes go wide as she struggles to catch her breath. She curses her body for reacting this way every time someone unexpectedly touches her. Ever since the incident almost a year ago, she just has not been the same.</p><p>The green-eyed girl suddenly springs into action, her protective instincts taking over. “Darling…" Lena panics as she kneels down next to the trembling girl. "Breathe, baby." She coaxes while rubbing the girl's back. The sound of Kara’s ragged breathing is tearing her heart in two.</p><p>“Four years together and I've never seen Kara have a panic attack.” Lena thinks as she rubs circles on the teacher's back in attempt to slow her panicked breathing.</p><p>Kara scoots further away from the green-eyed girl and Lena’s heart breaks even more than she thought it ever possibly could. The worst part is, Lena can't even tell if she is the cause of the fear in Kara’s eyes or if the panic attack is.</p><p>Before Lena can scoot any closer to the girl, she is yanked back. She turns around to give the culprit a piece of her mind, but is met with a fiery brunette who looks incredibly intimidating. Lena watches as the girl's eyes flicker between her and Kara, who is behind her. The girl’s eyes soften immensely as they land on the blonde who is still struggling to breathe.</p><p>"You." Lucy points to the wide-eyed brunette in front of her. "Stay here. I'm not done with you."</p><p>Lena notices a presence beside her and she looks over to see Nia.</p><p>"Nia, watch her." Lucy points to the green-eyed girl. The fiery brunette then turns on her heels and makes her way to the blonde. She sits down beside her and transfers her from the floor to her lap in one quick motion.</p><p>"Okay Kar, breathe for me." Lucy whispers in Kara’s ear as she rocks her slowly. "You're safe. I've got you."</p><p>Lena feels a pang of jealously run through her as she watches her wife being comforted by another woman. Jealously turns to relief as soon as Kara’s breathing slowly starts to return to normal again. After a couple of minutes, Kara removes her head from Lucy’s neck and finally locks eyes with the green ones that haven't stopped staring at her.</p><p>"Kara." Lena steps forward again, but halts as soon as she watches Lucy set Kara back down and stand up.</p><p>"You need to go." Lucy points behind Lena to the exit of the bar. Before Lena can protest, her favorite voice finally fills the air again.</p><p>"Luce, it's okay." Kara stands up and places a hand on the brunette’s shoulder. Lucy searches Kara’s eyes and when she finds the reassurance she is looking for, she backs off and goes to stand beside Nia.</p><p>Unable to stare into the green eyes before her, Kara starts to play with her fingers. She wants to apologize for her outburst, but she doesn't know how. She never knows how to apologize for them so she's gotten to where she just doesn't. Luckily, Lena speaks up and breaks the awkward silence. "Are you okay? How are you feeling, darling?"</p><p>Kara’s eyebrows knit together at the use of the pet name. "Why do you keep calling me that?" She finally drops her hands to her side and looks up to search the girl's face for answers. Instead, she just finds herself getting lost in the green eyes that are oozing nothing but love and kindness.</p><p>Lena swallows the lump that has set up camp in her throat and steps forward. "Look, I know you are mad at me, but I did it for a good reason and I've been trying to get in touch with you for a year, but I haven't been able to. I came to find you as soon as I got a flight." The green-eyed woman slowly reaches her hand out and clasps it around Kara’s left hand. To her surprise, she doesn't pull away so Lena takes it upon herself to interlace their hands. Out of habit, Lena’s finger goes to trace Kara’s wedding band, but all she feels is smooth skin under her touch. Stunned, Lena looks down and finds Kara’s ring finger bare. "W-where's your wedding ring?"</p><p>"What wedding ring? I'm not married." The teacher states simply as she looks into the eyes in front of her and watches them fill with tears and a hint of disbelief.</p><p>Lena panics as she runs her fingers through her hair. "Tell me this is some kind of joke." She narrows her eyes at the blonde in front of her. "Kara, we've been married for two fucking years!"</p><p>Kara steps back when Lena raises her voice and Lena immediately chastises herself when she sees the fear and confusion in the girl's eyes. "I-I don't know what you're talking about. I'm sorry." The blonde takes another step back, clearly intimidated by the girl in front of her.</p><p>Lucy, having witnessed the whole scene, steps in after something clicks in her mind. She quickly approaches the green-eyed brunette who looks as if she will break down as soon as one more word leaves Kara’s mouth. "Lena, is it? Can I talk to you for a minute?"</p><p>Lena tears her eyes away from the confused blue ones before her and stares at the woman who just addressed her. Once the words register within her, she solemnly nods her head and follows the girl to the front of the bar where she sat earlier with Nia. Lucy sits down and pulls the bar stool next to her out as an invitation for Lena to do the same.</p><p>"Let me start by introducing myself." The woman turns to face Lena. "I'm Lucy. Kara’s childhood best friend."</p><p>That's where I've heard that name before. Lena thinks as she remembers her wife's stories about her childhood and high school days.</p><p>Lena carefully takes the hand that has been extended to her and shakes it. "Lena. Kara’s wife." She speaks confidently.</p><p>Lucy sighs and offers the brunette a sympathetic smile. "I believe you... but Kara might not." She finally states after finding the right words to say. Lena just furrows her eyebrows and waits for the brunette to continue. "About a year ago, I got a call from Kara’s mother. She was frantic." Lena feels her hands getting clammy as she listens to Lucy. "Apparently Kara had been assaulted one night at a hotel here in National City. None of us even knew Kara was back, we hadn't really spoken to her in years. I mean the last thing we knew was that Kara had left the country to teach abroad." Lucy explains.</p><p>Lena’s worst fears just came true. Her wife was hurt and she wasn't there to protect her. Her heart slams against her chest cavity with so much force that she can hear it in her ears. Lucy knows it's a lot to process so she gives the girl in front of her some time to do so. Lena clears her throat and finally speaks up. "She was assaulted.. was she umm..." Lena can't find it in herself to choke out the one word that sits on the edge of her tongue.</p><p>Luckily, Lucy knows what she is insinuating and quickly reassures her. "No, no they didn't touch her like that." Lucy informs the green-eyed girl and watches her release a sigh of relief, similar to the one she released herself after the doctors informed them all in the waiting room that it was physical abuse, but not sexual abuse. "But they left her in critical condition." She regretfully informs Lena. "They uh bashed her head into a wall and the knife they held to her throat left a cut so deep that it almost killed her." She continues. "They took everything she owned. Money, phone, and we didn't know it then, but her wedding ring."</p><p>Lena balls her fists up so tightly that she can feel her nails piercing through her palms.</p><p>“How could they do that to my wife? To Kara? The kindest, most innocent human being to walk the face of the earth.” Lena thinks as unwanted images of a beaten Kara pour into her mind.</p><p>"So the head trauma... she can't remember anything?" Lena asks, her voice laced with emotion.</p><p>"She remembers everything up until her senior year of high school." Lucy informs the distraught girl sitting on the stool in front of her.</p><p>Lena’s shoulders slump. "Is there uh any chance she will get her memory back?"</p><p>"They said it's possible, but not likely. The doctors said it's a miracle she even survived." Lucy looks over her shoulder at the blonde girl who is talking to Nia. Lucy absolutely hated being separated from Kara all through college and two years after college. Lucy understood Kara’s reasoning for wanting to leave the states and tried not to take offense when Kara changed her number and didn't tell anyone back home, including her. That didn't change the fact that everyday she missed her best friend and everyday she beat herself up for not standing up for Kara more, for not letting Kara know that what she was feeling was okay. Ever since she received the call from Eliza, the brunette has promised herself that she would never leave her best friend again. Ever.</p><p>She turns back around when she hears sniffling and watches as the green-eyed girl angrily wipes away the tears that are racing down her face.</p><p>"Look, Lena. I don't know you or anything about you, but I believe that you two were married. I can tell you love her. I see it in your eyes. I'm not asking you to get lost, but just lay low for awhile please." She pleads. "Kar is still recovering from the attack and she's still going to counseling twice a month. She also has panic attacks like the one you saw earlier quite frequently." Lena nods her head, quietly agreeing to Lucy’s request.</p><p>Lucy knows there is one more thing she has to tell the girl sitting before her, but she doesn't really know how to go about doing that, seeing as she is already severely distraught. However, the brunette knows the girl before her needs to know, even if it will be hard for her to cope with it. "Lena, there's also something else you should know."</p><p>Lena watches as the brunette in front of her tries to find the courage to tell her something. Her heart continues to pound against the inside of her chest forcefully and she swears there is someone wrapping their hands around her throat and choking her.</p><p>"Kar is kind of-" Lucy starts, only to be interrupted by her friend's voice.</p><p>"Babe!" Lena hears a familiar voice shout and she turns around to answer to the name that the same familiar voice has called her for the past 4 years. Her eyes find the blue-eyed girl and the smile that was making it's way to her lips, suddenly diminishes as she realizes that term of endearment is not being directed toward her.</p><p>Lena watches as the young teacher makes her way across the bar, the green-eyed girl's heart sinking further and further with each step she takes away from her.</p><p>Lena has felt pain. The time she broke her arm in the 5th grade. The time she collided with the pavement headfirst after she fell off of her skateboard in the 10th grade. The time she was nailed in the face with the softball in 12th grade.</p><p>But none of that pain even comes close to comparing to the pain she is feeling right now as she watches her Kara... her wife… jump into the arms of someone else.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>All of the air is ripped from Lena’s lungs as she watches her wife press her body up against the dark-headed boy that just sauntered into the bar. That's the thing about love. It can take your breath away in the best way possible or it can take your breath away in the worst way possible. Usually when it pertains to Kara and her love for the girl, it's the former of the two, but today, it's the latter.</p><p>Lena watches as Kara pulls back from the hug and then leans in to capture the boy's lips in her own. She watches as the boy's hands travel from her wife's hips to her butt momentarily to give it a firm squeeze. Kara grabs his hands and moves them back to her hips which doesn't surprise Lena one bit because Kara was never really too keen on PDA.</p><p>Lena always strives to live by the quote "Let no man pull you so low as to hate him" and always tries her hardest to love everyone around her. She always gives the benefit of the doubt to everyone and always makes sure to get to know someone before deciding who they are as a person. But today, today all of that went down the drain. She offers a quick apology to Martin Luther King Jr because today, she has been pulled low and her body is burning with hatred toward the man who currently has his arms snaked around her wife's waist.</p><p>Lucy, on the other hand, keeps alternating her gaze between Lena and the couple sucking face at the other side of the bar.</p><p>“She's about to break that damn bar stool with her bare hands.” Lucy thinks as she watches the green-eyed girl's knuckles turn white.</p><p>After what seems like an eternity of kissing, Lena decides that she's had enough of the cringe-worthy public display of affection in front of her and starts to stand up from the bar stool so she can mop the dirty ass floor beneath her shoes with the dirty ass man who has his paws all over her girl. Before she can take a step though, she feels a hand latch onto her wrist to prevent her from moving forward. She turns around to face a sympathetic Lucy and waits for her to give her a good enough reason to not kill the man who has her entire world in his hands.</p><p>"That's her livelihood, Lena. She has been with him for 5 months." Lucy speaks up and Lena doesn't make another move toward the couple in front of her. Turns out, Lucy’s reason is actually a good enough reason for Lena not to kill this guy.  Right now anyways. The brunette knows the past year has been complete hell on Kara and the last thing she wants is to come into her life and disrupt it.</p><p>Lucy, noticing that Lena has calmed down somewhat, slowly releases her grip on the brunette and prays she stays put. "Trust me when I say that I would rather her be with you and I just met you." She informs the agitated brunette. "William is well..." She tries to think of the right words to say to describe Kara’s boyfriend, but none of the ones coming to her mind are appropriate enough to say in front of a girl she has just met. Plus, she doesn't want to give Lena another reason to want to kill the man who's latched onto Kara. Mainly because she knows that if Lena does go after him, she will only pour a drink and cheer her on as she watches her kick his ass and then Lucy would be in trouble with Kara for not stopping Lena.</p><p>"Everything okay?" A whisper breaks Lucy from her thoughts and she looks over to see Nia sliding onto the stool next to hers.</p><p>"Nope." Lucy sighs as she watches Kara untangle herself from William and walk over to the three of them. She stops a couple of feet in front of them and shoves her hands into the front pockets of her jeans.</p><p>"Hey sorry to interrupt, but Lucy I was just going to tell you that I'm going to stay with William tonight so don't wait up." The young blonde tries to focus on her best friend and not the green eyes that seem to be burning a hole in the side of her head.</p><p>Lucy sighs again. Something she always seems to do anytime William is around or anytime his name even comes up in conversation. "Kar, I really think you should stay here and sort this-"</p><p>"I want to... Believe me." Kara glances in Lena’s direction for a split second before giving her attention back to Lucy. "But William is hungry and I promised I would cook for him tonight." She looks apologetically at her friend while nervously picking at her thumb nail. Lucy just nods understandingly.</p><p>Kara offers her a small smile and then turns to address the green-eyed girl, silently praying she doesn't get hypnotized by those eyes. "I'm sorry..."</p><p>"Lena." The green-eyed girl pipes up when she realizes that Kara was fishing for her name.</p><p>"Lena." Kara repeats after her, trying the name out on her own tongue. This elicits a small smile from the owner of the name.</p><p>The green-eyed girl reaches up to scratch the back of her neck, a nervous habit of hers. "Maybe we can uh-"</p><p>"Kara!" A loud voice interrupts Lena and she cringes. "My car is running and I know you don't have the money to pay for my next tank of gas so let's go."</p><p>The green-eyed girl clenches her jaw so tight that she wouldn't be a bit surprised if her teeth started cracking from the pressure. She hears a scoff from Nia two stools away from her and a hushed “oh hell nah” from Lucy.</p><p>Kara turns around momentarily to signal to the boy that she would only be one minute and then turns back around to address her best friend. "I'll see you later, Luce?" She asks hopefully. "We live together so I'd hope so." Lucy playfully sticks her tongue out at her best friend. Kara grins and opens her mouth to reply, but the words get lost on her tongue when her body is jerked back.</p><p>"Did you not hear me the first time? I said I'm fucking hungry. Come on." William spits as he tightens his grip on the blonde and starts dragging her toward the exit of the bar. Kara knows there's no sense in fighting him so she just lets him drag her away from her friends and to the exit. The green-eyed girl, on the other hand, has seen enough and she stands up from the stool. Her eyes narrow in on the dark headed boy and she has every intention of going after him. Once again, before she can take a step, she is stopped. She looks over to see that Nia is the one halting her this time. Nia knows she has to stop Lena because she knows her fiancé would be more than happy to just sit back and watch Lena drag his ass.</p><p>"Let her go." Nia sighs, her heart clenching as she takes in the broken girl before her. She feels the same way Lucy and Lena do about William, but she knows he's Kara’s boyfriend. She also knows that if the green-eyed girl wants to win Kara back, she cannot physically harm the girl's boyfriend. Especially not right in front of her and a whole bar full of people. Plus, any type of violence triggers panic attacks within Kara and so not only did she stop Lena so she could have a chance, but she stopped her to protect her friend's health.</p><p>Lena watches every step Kara takes to the door and just like in the airport, her heart breaks more and more as the distance between the two of them widens. When Kara gets to the door, she turns around one last time and locks eyes with the worried green ones across the room. The young teacher offers a sympathetic smile to the owner of the beautiful green eyes, one in which Lena returns. Then the door opens and closes and Kara is gone.</p><p>Lena huffs and sits back down on her bar stool in defeat. She spins around rests her head in her hands.</p><p>"Three whiskeys please." Lucy tells the bartender after she signals for him to come over. She momentarily lifts her hand up and hovers it inches away from Lena’s back before retracting it. She so desperately wants to provide some sort of comfort for the brunette, but she knows that the only source of comfort she wants just walked out of the door. Well just got dragged out of the door, but that's beside the point. Lucy feels a hand interlace with hers and she squeezes it, silently thanking Nia for the comfort.</p><p>As soon as the bartender brings the drinks, she slides one over to Lena, keeps one for herself, and slides the remaining one in Nia’s direction.</p><p>Lena finally lifts her head when a glass hits her arm. She offers Lucy a grateful smile before bringing the glass up to her red lips and taking a large gulp. Normally the bitter liquid would burn going down, but tonight she doesn't feel it. Right now her body can't seem to feel anything. She traces the rim of the glass with her pointer finger as she replays what happened just moments ago in her head. She can't seem to shake off what she saw flicker in Kara’s blue eyes when she interacted with the brunette boy. Dread? Fear? Lena just can't seem to put her finger on it, but she knows it wasn't happiness or bliss. That elates her, but also terrifies her. She cannot simply stand the thought of Kara unhappy and she doesn't understand how someone could treat such a beautiful soul so poorly. As she sits there contemplating what type of guy William is, she thinks back to her earlier conversation with Lucy.</p><p>"Douchy... conceited... jackass... " Lena lists off the words that come to her mind as she stares at the variety of bottles sitting on the wall in front of her. "Are those the words you were looking for to describe William earlier?" She turns to face the girl beside her.</p><p>Lucy chokes on her drink and Nia pats her on the back until her coughing fit ends. "I knew I liked you." The brunette wags her finger at the green-eyed girl.</p><p>Lena smirks momentarily before grabbing her drink and taking another swig. Her smirk fades as soon as she lets her mind wander again. She briefly looks at the two girls next to her and she finds comfort in knowing that her wife has had Lucy and Nia by her side for a year. Lena just met the girls, but she can tell that they are fiercely loyal friends and incredibly fun to be around. She knows that they will all become the best of friends.</p><p>"All kidding aside, you already have two people in your corner." Lucy states as she nudges Lena’s shoulder with her own and gestures between herself and Nia. “We’re rooting for you two." The brunette winks and Lena offers her a grateful smile before downing the rest of the liquid in her glass.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lena wakes up the next morning and drags herself out of the bed. She enters the hotel bathroom and grimaces as she sees the bags under her eyes. Truth be told, she didn't sleep a wink last night. How could she when she knows her wife is sleeping over at her boyfriend's house? The same boyfriend that yelled condescending things at her in front of her own friends and a room full of strangers. The same boyfriend that gripped her arm with so much force that Lena saw a grimace appear on Kara’s beautiful features. The brunette grips the counter in front of her tightly as she remembers what happened the night before. After taking a few calming breaths, she releases her hold on the counter and strips off her clothes so she can shower.</p><p>After getting herself ready, the young brunette heads down to the lobby to grab a bagel from the continental breakfast and takes a seat at one of the open tables in the room. She spreads cream cheese on her bagel and then pulls out her phone and grabs a pen from her purse. She researches the nearest car lots and writes down the address on a napkin. Under it, she writes down the addresses for all the local pawn shops around her. The final thing she researches and records are addresses for nearby apartment complexes. After finishing her blueberry bagel and orange juice, she hails a taxi and heads to the nearest car lot.</p><p>The brunette decides on a black Dodge Charger and drives off the lot with it. Could she have afforded a BMW or Audi? Yes. But this was an easy decision. The Charger has always been her favorite type of car because it's the car that her wife used for transportation all throughout her high school and college years. Lena rode in it and drove it millions of times and watched as Kara cried when she had to sell it before they left for Venice. She shed a few tears as well because the car held many memories for the both of them.</p><p>No other car would do.</p><p>After filling out the necessary paperwork, she plugs one of the pawn shop address into her phone and makes her way to it. Three pawn shops later and she hasn't found what she's looking for so she plugs in the last unused address on her napkin into the GPS and heads there.</p><p>Lena pushes the wooden door open and makes her way into the small shop. A gray headed man emerges from the back and offers Lena a warm smile, one in which she returns.</p><p>"How may I help you today?" He asks as he stands behind the glass counter filled with trinkets.</p><p>"May I please see your wedding band collection?" Lena asks while placing her phone and wallet on top of the glass case between them. The man nods and grabs a set of keys from his pocket.</p><p>"Male or female?" He asks as he squats down to get eye level with the case.</p><p>"Female." She answers and the man reaches in the case and retrieves a box of rings. As soon as he sets it in front of her, she starts digging through them all. Her eyes scan each ring as she sifts through the pile of rings and after 10 minutes of searching, she starts to lose hope. That is until a familiar band catches her eye. The brunette holds her breath and grabs the silver ring with the oval shaped diamond on the top. She brings it up to her eyesight and then tilts it a bit so she can look underneath it. Tears well in her eyes as she sees the sun that is engraved on the underneath side of the band. A sob escapes her lips and she allows a couple of tears to fall before quickly wiping them away. She always referred to Kara as her sun because she was just a big ball of light. Eventually, Kara started referring to Lena as her moon because she said that she was the light in the midst of all the darkness in the world. That is why her own wedding band is engraved with a moon.</p><p>The man, having heard the brunette sniffling, walks over to her. "Find what you were looking for?"</p><p>"I did." She beams and places the ring on the glass in between the two of them. "I want to buy this one... again."</p><p>She watches as the man furrows his eyebrows for a second before a look of understanding crosses his older features. "It was stolen, huh?"</p><p>The brunette sighs and runs her fingers though her hair. "Yeah. The bastards almost k-killed her." She wills the tears away and curses herself when one falls. She hates crying in front of people. Especially strangers.</p><p>"Take it." The man grabs Lena’s right hand that is resting on the counter and flips it over. He places the ring on her palm and closes her hand around it. "You aren't paying for something that's already yours."</p><p>Lena clutches the ring tightly in her hand and offers the man a grateful smile. "Are you sure?"</p><p>"Positive." The man nods, a small smile escaping his lips. "Now go place it back on your wife's finger where it belongs."</p><p>"Thank you. So much." Lena wipes a tear away and offers the man another smile before making her way back to her car. As soon as she gets in, she unclasps the chain from around her neck and slips the ring on it, watching as it slides down the chain before coming to rest alongside the pendent that has her and Kara’s wedding date engraved on it.</p><p>She spends the rest of her morning apartment hunting. Four apartment complexes later and she still isn't pleased. None of them spoke to her. The first apartment she bought with Kara spoke to her and she knew when she toured it for the first time, that she wanted to live there with her girlfriend.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>“Lena, I swear if you let me fall I will murder you with my bare hands." Kara mumbles as she walks forward, one of Lena’s hands covering both of her eyes.</p><p>“C’mon, darling, don’t you trust me?" Lena chuckles as she shuts the car door with her free hand.</p><p>"You? Yeah. Do I trust myself to walk without sight? No. You know I already trip over thin air and that is with both of my eyes uncovered." Kara sighs and she attempts to reason with the green-eyed girl who has one hand covering both of her eyes and the other on the small of her back. "Plus, yesterday we flew 12 hours on a plane so I'm still a bit jet-lagged. We all know that a jet-lagged Kara is a tired Kara and a tired Kara is an accident prone Kara." The green-eyed girl shakes her head and just chuckles at her girlfriend's dramatics.</p><p>"I won't let you fall, baby." Lena promises as she leans around to plant a kiss to the blonde’s cheek. Kara sighs and lets Lena be her sight for the next couple of minutes. After a couple of steps forward, Lena brings them to a stop. "Okay babe, just one staircase and we will be there."</p><p>Leading Kara to where she wanted her to go turned out to be easier than she thought. The hard part was making Kara keep her eyes closed while Lena drove them from the hotel to here. The two were supposed to be looking for a place to live together, but yesterday when Kara was out job hunting, Lena took it upon herself to go apartment hunting.</p><p>The younger girl groans, but doesn't protest.</p><p>“Okay, take a step." Lena encourages and watches as her wife picks up her Converse clad foot and places it on the step in front of her. Then she brings the other foot up to join and once both feet are on the first step, Kara continues the process and the two of them slowly ascend the staircase. "One more babe you're doing great." The green-eyed girl praises the girl in front of her. After Kara conquers the last step, Lena breathes a sigh of relief. The older girl leads Kara a couple of more steps to the destination and then once her girlfriend’s feet are pointing at the door in front of her, Lena leans in and positions her lips close to her ear. "Open your eyes."</p><p>As soon as the words register with Kara and she feels Lena lift her hand from her eyes, she slowly blinks her baby blues open and her gaze falls upon a door with the number 202 on it. Tears form in Kara’s eyes when she realizes what she's looking at.</p><p>"Is this..." She chokes out as she turns around and faces her girlfriend.</p><p>"Our apartment." Lena finishes her abandoned thought. The tears finally spill over the rims of Kara’s eyes and she leaps into her girlfriend's arms.</p><p>"Our apartment." The young blonde sighs as she tightens her grip on the green-eyed girl. "Our. Apartment." She squeals before pulling back and looking into her favorite pair of green eyes.</p><p>Lena nods and brings her pale hands up to rest on her girlfriend’s cheeks. She uses her thumbs to wipe away the tears that are cascading down her soft skin.<br/>________________<br/>End of flashback<br/>________________</p><p>She smiles fondly at the memory and plugs in the second to last apartment complex address into her phone. After touring that particular one for 30 minutes, she has a smile on her face because so far this has been her favorite one. It is a cozy one-bedroom apartment and it is not too far from downtown. The complex also has a swimming pool and workout room so that's a plus.</p><p>"So what do you think?" The woman asks as she shows Lena the inside of the apartment.</p><p>"Well I really love it, but I still have one more apartment complex to check out before I make my final decisions." The green-eyed girl offers her a hopeful smile. "Can I get back to you?"</p><p>"Of course. Just-" The lady is interrupted by the ringing of her phone. "I need to take this, but just come back by if you decide you are interested." She smiles before walking into the bedroom of the apartment to answer the call. The green-eyed girl whips her phone out and starts to plug in the address of the last apartment complex as she exits. She only looks up from the device when her body collides with something. Well someone.</p><p>"I'm so sor-" The words die on her lips as she looks up and her eyes meet her favorite blue ones. "Kara. Hi."</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Lena, right?" The blonde asks as she shyly adjusts her glasses and Lena nods. "Sorry I'm pretty bad with remembering names. Well remembering anything these days." She chuckles and Lena feels her chest tighten at the sound, one of her favorite sounds, that she has been deprived of hearing for over a year.</p><p>"Y-yeah it's Len-"</p><p>"Kar, I'm coming!" A voice interrupts Lena. "Let's go get pizza I'm starv...ing." Lucy pauses when she sees the green-eyed girl. "Well well green eyes couldn't stay away." She smirks as Lena’s face turns a dark shade of red.</p><p>“Yeah, well I was apartment hunting and I ran into Kara." Lena gestures toward her wife.</p><p>"Well I guess the hunt is over, huh?" Lucy gives her a quick thumbs up when Kara isn't looking and the green-eyed girl chuckles.</p><p>"Yeah. I think I've found a good one." The green-eyed girl glances at the blonde in front of her and watches as a blush rises to her cheeks. Lena internally dances for still being able to have that effect on her.</p><p>"Mmhmm. Well we are going to get pizza. Wanna join? Nia is meeting us there." Lucy speaks up, effectively breaking the staring contest that's going on between the two former lovers.</p><p>"Sure. I could go for some pizza." Lena pipes up. A little too enthusiastically probably. Lucy smirks and shakes her head at the enthusiastic reply.</p><p>"I'll drive." Lena offers as she pulls out her keys and leads the girls to her car. Lena clicks the unlock button from a distance and Kara sets her sights on the car.</p><p>“Hey, I used to have a car just like this in high school." Kara scurries to the black car ahead of the other two girls. "I loved that car." She comments as she runs her fingers over the hood of Lena’s new car.</p><p>"I know." Lena whispers as she smiles fondly. She hoped to get this reaction from Kara when the blonde saw the car for the first time. Lena knew it was her first car and she got it when she was 16 so the blue-eyed girl would still have a memory of the car.</p><p>"That's so fucking cute." Lucy whispers as she stands by the green-eyed girl and watches Kara inspect the car. "You buy a car like the one she had in high school and yet William can't even be bothered to remember her birthday. My heart." Lucy dramatically places her hand over her chest.</p><p>“Glad to know I have your approval.” Lena shoots a smile in her direction.</p><p>“Of course." Lucy stuffs her hands in the pockets of her jeans. "I might not have met you, but Kar mentioned you when we would occasionally FaceTime."</p><p>Lena smiles as she makes her way over to where Kara is standing. She goes to the passenger's side door and opens it for the girl. Lena watches as another blush spreads across the girl’s cheeks.</p><p>"Thank you, Lena." Kara offers her a warm smile before sliding into the car.</p><p>"You're welcome, darling." She mumbles after the door closes.</p><p>As soon as the brunette enters the car, she plugs her phone in and turns on a song that she hopes Kara still likes. She patiently waits for a reaction from the girl to the right of her. Sure enough, as soon as “Head Above Water" starts playing, the blue-eyed girl perks up.</p><p>"I love him!" Kara exclaims before singing the first verse loudly. Butterflies erupt in Lena’s stomach as she listens to her wife sing .</p><p>"I know." Lena smiles over at her and starts to reach for the blonde’s hand, but stops herself and brings the wandering hand up to the wedding band hanging from her neck. It's a piece of Kara and if she can't hold the girl to the right of her, she'd hold onto the band that symbolizes the promise the two of them made to each other a year ago. Lena’s fingers absentmindedly trace the smooth part of the band, just as she used to do when she held Kara’s hand in hers. She glances in the rear view mirror momentarily and sees a smirk plastered across Lucy’s face. Lena just shakes her head and continues to listen to her favorite girl sing her favorite songs.</p><p>“It’s been ages since I’ve been here.” Lena states as she pulls into the parking lot of her and Kara’s favorite eating place. They would eat there at least twice a week, if not more. All three girls shuffle out of the Charger. Lena once again has to stop herself from grabbing the teacher's hand as they are walking. She does, however, open the door for Kara and let her walk in ahead of her.</p><p>"Thank you." Kara offers her a bright smile.</p><p>"Anytime." Lena sends her a quick wink and then shakes her head as Lucy walks through the open door with a smirk still present on her face.</p><p>"Luce! Over here! Nia yells from across the restaurant. Lena watches as the girl makes her way over to the booth in the back with Kara trailing behind.</p><p>“Hi, baby. How was your day?" Lucy slides in next to her fiancé and gives her a quick peck on the lips. Lena’s eyes go wide in shock as she slides into the booth next to Kara. She didn't see that one coming. She knew Nia said she was engaged, but she didn't know it was to the sassy brunette across from her.</p><p>"You two are cute." Lena smiles and points between the two of them.</p><p>"Duh." Lucy scoffs and wraps an arm around Nia’s shoulders. Lena rolls her eyes and Kara chuckles.</p><p>“Oh, baby I forgot to tell you that Lena thought I was hitting on her at the bar the other day." Nia snorts as she informs the brunette of what happened at the bar the other night.</p><p>"Psh you aren't her type, Lena." Lucy remarks. "She's only into hella cute girl’s named Lucy, isn't that right, babe?”</p><p>"That's right." Nia grabs Lucy’s chin and pulls her in for a kiss.</p><p>Lena, not wanting to stare at the kissing couple, turns to Kara. "How did they meet?"<br/>"They were friends for like 2 years and then decided they wanted to be more." She answers while also trying to avoid the couple sucking face across from her. "They were never just friends though. All the longing stares on game nights and at sleepovers were a dead give away. I always knew it was more." Kara smiles in approval at the two girls before her.</p><p>"When you know you know." Lena whispers as she admires her wife's flawless side profile. Kara having heard the whisper, turns to her right to make eye contact with the green eyes that are already staring at her intensely. She feels a tingling sensation in her stomach, but dismisses it as just hunger. Kara breaks their staring when she feels her phone vibrate. She turns it over in her hands and cringes when she sees the name on the screen.</p><p>Lena notices Kara’s change in demeanor and steals a glance at her phone screen.</p><p>William.</p><p>The green-eyed girl rolls her eyes as Kara looks at her pleadingly. Lena gets the hint and shuffles out of the booth so Kara can do the same.</p><p>"I'm just going to uh call him back." Kara points to her phone and then outside. Lena watches Lucy roll her eyes as well. "Order me a Coke please.” The teacher says to no one in particular before turning on her heels and walking out of the restaurant. Lena’s eyes follow her as she steps out of the pizza place. The brunette turns around occasionally to keep an eye on her and sees the young blonde pacing the parking lot. She knows the conversation is not friendly because every couple of seconds Kara runs a hand through her blonde locks. Lena knows she only does that when she's stressed, worried, or frustrated.</p><p>"Does this happen a lot?" Lena turns back around to address the couple in front of her. "Is he always this… controlling?"</p><p>"What you've seen is nothing. What we've seen is nothing compared to what I know goes on behind closed doors." Lucy sighs and runs her fingers through her hair.</p><p>Lena sits up straighter and glances at the pacing girl outside the restaurant to make sure she is still there. "What do you mean by that?"</p><p>Lucy starts to open her mouth, but is interrupted by a familiar voice.</p><p>“Why didn’t you guys tell me you were coming? I could've gotten a head start on making the potstickers!” Alex stands in front of the table and Lena’s body goes rigid. When she looks up from the menu, she makes eye contact with the woman and Alex’s face pales at the sight of the green-eyed girl. “Lena.” </p><p>Confusion. Anger. Betrayal. Just three of the emotions that rush through Lena when she sees Alex. Lena cannot understand why if Alex was present in Kara’s life now, why she didn’t reach out to Lena when Kara was hurt? Lena has never been Alex’s favorite person, but she still should've reached out.</p><p>“We need to talk.” Lena stands up from the booth and ushers Alex back through the kitchen door. When it’s just the two of them, Lena turns to her. “Why didn’t you reach out to me this past year? I called and called Kara and got no answer, which I now know is because she got a new phone number after the assault happened. But what I can’t seem to wrap my head around is why you didn’t try to contact me? You knew we were married… you knew-”</p><p>“Lena, it wasn't because I didn't like you that I didn't reach out to you. I didn’t reach out because my sister showed up alone in National City with only a suitcase and a duffel bag. She called me crying uncontrollably right before she was assaulted and all she could say was your name. I was going to meet her later that night after I got off my police shift. I swear, I thought you two were done or something.” Alex sighs and looks up at Lena with apologetic eyes.</p><p>“I sent her away because of the terrorist attacks in Venice. There was only room for one person on the plane so I sent her to safety. I tried every single day to get here to her and tried every single day to call her.” Lena rubs her forehead in exasperation. “I know how it must’ve looked, Alex, so I don’t blame you. I’m glad I have an understanding now of why you didn’t reach out.”</p><p>“I know we never liked each other, Lena. Our families never got alone and I know I blamed you for taking Kara away from me, but I’ve grown and I’ve changed. Kara and I are closer than ever. I hope we can leave the past in the past?” Alex looks at her hopefully.</p><p>A hint of a smile graces Lena’s features. “That sounds good to me. I know how important you are to her and since I assume she doesn’t know about our rocky past, it’s probably best if we just bury it and start fresh.” Lena extends her hand to her wife’s sister. “Friends?” </p><p>Alex doesn’t hesitate to take the pale hands in hers. “Sounds good to me.” After a firm shake, their hands drop to their sides. “So you wanna tell me about your plan?”</p><p>Lena’s eyebrows furrow. “What plan?”</p><p>“The plan to get my sister to fall in love with you again.” Alex smirks at her.</p><p>“Oh yeah, that plan is in full motion right now.” Lena chuckles as she leads them back out of the kitchen. "So you want to tell me about how you now currently own Kara's favorite restaurant in National City?"</p><p>Alex just shrugs. "After the attack, I wanted to be there for Kara more. Being a police officer didn't allow that and I've always loved to cook. When this place was looking for a new owner, I jumped at the chance."</p><p>"Alex!" Lucy pipes up before Lena can respond and she quickly slides out of the booth to get to the older girl.</p><p>“Damn, babe you don't even greet me with that much enthusiasm." Nia chuckles at her fiancés dramatic welcoming.</p><p>“Oh, shush. I haven't seen her in a couple of weeks." Lucy throws her arms around the girl. "You work too much, Al.” The brunette pouts.</p><p>"Well owning a restaurant is a lot of work." Alex sighs and releases her grip on Lucy. "Where's Kara?"</p><p>Lucy points outside and Alex observes her sister who is still pacing the parking lot. “Fucking William?" She asks knowingly.</p><p>"Always." Nia rolls her eyes.</p><p>"So Lena was just about to tell me about her plan to get my sister back.” Alex says and Lena just sits there stunned. She opens her mouth, but then closes it back again. Luckily, a voice chimes in.</p><p>“Glad to see you two getting along.” Lucy looks between the two of them with a proud smile. “So what is this plan to get her back, Lena? Do tell.”</p><p>"Who's getting who back?" Kara asks as she gives Alex a bear hug. “Hey, sis. Got some potstickers cooking?”</p><p>“You only love me now for the potstickers, huh?” Alex ruffles her sister’s hair as she releases her from the hug. Lena is glad for the change of topic. "So what can I get you guys?" Alex asks as Kara slides into the booth beside Lena. "I don't usually serve, but this is usually a slow times for us so I sent my server on break." She pulls out a pen and writes everyone’s food and drink orders on her hand. "It'll be out soon." She announces after sliding the pen back into her pocket.</p><p>Kara notices that Alex is about to say something, but the grumbling of Kara’s stomach interrupts her. Everyone at the table looks at her with an amused grin. "Well get to it, sis. The food won't cook itself and I'm hungry." Kara rubs her empty stomach and looks pleadingly at the restaurant owner. The other 3 girls at the table laugh and shake their heads.</p><p>"That's my girl." Lena thinks as she smiles fondly at the beautiful girl beside her.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The two pans of pizza, one cheese and one pepperoni, and two plates of potstickers finally arrive at the table and Alex pulls up a chair to eat with her friends and sister.</p><p>"Well if no one else is going to eat, I will." Kara shrugs and reaches for a potsticker. In the process, the sleeve of her shirt rolls up a bit and reveals a nasty purple and black bruise on her left wrist.</p><p>The green-eyed girl notices this and before she can stop herself, she reaches out and takes Kara’s thin arm in her hands. She quickly rolls the sleeve up, ignoring Kara’s protests, and inspects the bruise that seems to wrap around her slender wrist.</p><p>"Who did this, Kara? Did he do this?" Lena’s blood boils and Kara jerks her arm away quickly. She hastily pulls her sleeve back down and stuffs a potsticker in her mouth.</p><p>"It's nothing." The blonde promises. "I just tripped."</p><p>"Kar, you don't trip and make a bruise in the shape of a handprint on your wrist." Lucy states as she scans her best friend's face for answers.</p><p>"Kara, is William hurting you?" Alex clenches her jaw. All four girls are scared to hear the answer, but they know they need to.</p><p>Kara’s wide eyes shoot up to meet her sister’s and she immediately shakes her head. "I'm not doing this right now." She quickly stands up.</p><p>Lucy stands up to try to reason with her. "What about lunch, Kar?" The brunette knows the way to Kara’s heart is through food. Everyone knows that.</p><p>"I'm not hungry anymore." Kara throws her napkin down on the table and storms out of the restaurant.</p><p>“Oh no you don’t." Lena thinks as she stands up and follows the blonde out of the restaurant. When she makes it out of the door, she sees her wife walking down the sidewalk. Lena jogs to catch up to her and her heart breaks when she sees the tears clouding her favorite pair of blue eyes.</p><p>“Hey, why don't you let me drive you home?" Lena offers as she clutches her fists together in attempt to stop herself from reaching out and comforting the teary eyed blonde.</p><p>"It's so frustrating not being able to remember." Kara allows the tears to fall as she stops walking. The green-eyed girl stops alongside her, Kara’s response catching her off guard. She racks her brain to try and come up with the right words to say to Kara, but she realizes that sometimes there simply aren't any right words. Lena has been in these kinds of situations a lot and so she knows that sometimes what people need most is the comfort of knowing that someone is listening to what they have to say and understanding them.</p><p>"I bet it is. I can't imagine going through what you went through." Throwing all restraint aside, Lena reaches out and extends her hands to touch Kara’s face. "You are so strong, Kara." She states as she uses the pads of her thumbs to wipe away the blonde’s tears. Her heart soars when she realizes that the teacher didn't pull away from her.</p><p>After a couple of moments of staring into Lena’s eyes, Kara finally speaks up. "Do you umm have any pictures of us?" She mumbles and Lena barely hears the request, but when the words actually register in her mind, a smile spreads across her face.</p><p>"I have a million." Lena answers confidently as she fishes her phone from her pocket. She scrolls through her pictures, trying to decide which one she wants to show Kara. She finally settles on showing her one of her favorite pictures of the two of them.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"I wanna do something spontaneous with you." Kara blurts out as she comes to a stop in front of a well-known nightclub. Lena quirks an eyebrow at her girlfriend and then follows her gaze to a sign on the nightclub marque that says 'closed for private wedding party.'</p><p>"Darling, don't even think about it. We have dinner reservations in a few minutes!" Lena chastises her girlfriend.</p><p>"Hmm free food or an expensive check?" Kara weighs out the options with her hands, ultimately putting the free food hand way above the other one. Lena rolls her eyes at the girl.</p><p>"Kara." Lena groans as she checks the time on her phone. Their reservation is in 10 minutes. "We will get caught and thrown out."</p><p>"These things always have way too much food and they don't know half the guests anyway." Kara promises as she starts inching her way to the door. "If anyone asks, I'm the bride's distant cousin from California and you..." Kara taps her chin. "you went to school with the groom."</p><p>Before Lena can protest, the door swings open a man carrying a trash bag exits. Kara quickly stops the door from closing and cocks her head to the side with a pout on her lips, silently asking Lena what her choice will be.</p><p>"Fine." Lena grumbles as she walks toward her girlfriend. "Will I ever be able to resist that charming pout of yours?"</p><p>"Nope. It's too cute." Kara leans in and captures her girlfriend's lips in her own. "I hope you brought your dancing shoes Luthor because your 'friend' from high school just got married and we have some celebrating to do." Kara smirks when she sees her girlfriend step forward and motion for her to go in. Kara leads them both into the club. Luckily, when they get in there, all the lights are dimmed and loud music is playing.</p><p>"Geez these people have a lot of friends." Lena mumbles as she takes in the couple of hundred people scattered throughout the place. "I don't even know this many people."</p><p>"Lucky for us, huh?" Kara rocks her eyebrows up and down playfully. "Now where's the food? I'm starved." The young blonde stands on her tiptoes to scan the place and Lena chuckles.</p><p>The two girls spend the rest of the night eating and dancing. Only once did they have to explain who they were and lucky for them, the people who asked were tipsy enough to buy their story.</p><p>A couple of hours and many glasses of champagne later, the girls decide to call it a night. As they are walking out of the wedding reception, a man with a camera in his hands gives the girls a card.</p><p>"So you can look at all the pictures that were taken tonight. I remember taking a few of you two. You make a really cute couple." The guy smiles warmly at them and Lena thanks him.</p><p>Lena decided then and there to always agree to Kara’s spontaneous ideas. Even if they do seem absurd.<br/>_________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>_________________</p><p>After finding her favorite picture taken of them from that night, Lena hands her phone off to Kara. "We uh crashed a wedding reception senior year of college. It was one of the best nights of my life." The green-eyed girl narrates the picture.</p><p>Kara’s eyes scan over the picture and she smiles. She is wearing a striped sweater and Lena is wearing a dark green color shirt that brings out her eyes. Their heads are pressed together, one of Lena’s arms is draped across the front of her in a hug. Kara runs her fingertips over the picture fondly and starts to tear up again. She’s smiling so widely in the picture and she looks just genuinely happy and in love. She can't remember the last time she's felt that happy.</p><p>"We look so happy." Kara chokes out.</p><p>"We were happy. So happy." Lena nods.</p><p>Kara finally hands Lena her phone back and looks up at her. "None of this is fair to you. I'm sorry."</p><p>"It's okay." Lena smiles gently at the blonde as she takes her phone back. "I'm okay. Don't worry about me."</p><p>"Nothing is okay, Lena. We are married and I don't even remember you. Not to mention the fact that I'm in a relationship with someone else." Kara wipes the tears falling from her eyes and Lena’s heart breaks.</p><p>Lena chokes up and once again, she is at a loss for words. "I understand, but I want you to know that I'm not going anywhere, Kara. I'll back off, but I'm still going to be around." Lena informs the girl.</p><p>Kara smiles sadly through her tears. "I wouldn't hate you if you left. I would understand."</p><p>"I would hate me if I left." Lena counters. "For better or worse. I made that promise to you two years ago and I intend to keep it."</p><p>Kara nods as she wipes the fresh tears from her face. "Do you uh mind taking me home?"</p><p>"Not at all." Lena pipes up as she leads the two of them back to her car. The car ride to the apartment is silent and Lena is okay with that. Silence between the two of them has never been awkward and she understands that Kara is having to process a lot of information.</p><p>When they arrive, Lena walks Kara to her apartment. The one conveniently situated right in front of her new apartment. Lucy sent Lena a text after they left the restaurant saying that she already called and told them that Lena wanted it and all she had to do was sign a lease. The fiery brunette was quickly becoming one of Lena’s favorite people.</p><p>"How did we get separated?" Kara asks as they come to a stop in front of her apartment.</p><p>"We lived in Venice and there were bombings there a year ago. You may have seen them on the news or heard about them. When the city was threatened, I immediately got you out of there and put you on a plane to here. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough room on the plane for me." Lena explains, the memory of that day still making her heart ache. "I tried to get back to you, but the airport and other ports around the city were hit and it took a year to rebuild them and get new planes and transportation."</p><p>Kara nods in understanding. "I do remember seeing the aftermath on television." Her eyes widen momentarily when a thought crosses her mind. "I can't believe I lived in Italy."</p><p>"You temporarily lived there for 4 months and then we resided there for two years." Lena smiles.</p><p>"Temporarily?" The blonde asks.</p><p>"Yeah. We both studied abroad there our junior year of college. Both of our majors dealt with the arts and well Venice is the best study abroad place for that." Lena explains. "That's how we met actually. We fell in love there. With the city and with each other. So when we graduated from National City University, we both decided to go back and start our lives there." Lena conveniently leaves out the part that Kara’s parents played in them moving to Venice. That isn't her story to tell though and if Kara ever finds out, Lena wants it to be from them and not her.</p><p>"What did I do there?" Kara asks eagerly.</p><p>"You taught music and did some writing on the side." Lena chuckles when Kara’s eyes widen.</p><p>"I was a music teacher?" Kara whispers to herself. "My parents never told me that." Her eyebrows crease together in confusion.</p><p>“They didn't tell you a lot.” Lena thinks to herself.</p><p>“What did you do?” Kara adjusts her glasses.</p><p>“I did a lot of painting and eventually opened up my own art gallery. My family always wanted me to take over their family business here, but I wasn’t interested. Art was my passion.” Lena explains with a slight shrug. </p><p>“I bet your art is beautiful.” Kara whispers and Lena’s heart swells. “Well thank you for playing 20 questions with me tonight." The blonde chuckles and ducks her head. "Also thank you for putting me on the plane, Lena." She picks at a string hanging from her shirt nervously. "I wish you could've used the ticket though."</p><p>Lena hooks her finger under Kara’s chin and raises her head. “Hey, look at me." She coaxes and when Kara finally looks up, she continues. "If I had to do it all over again, if I had to do it tomorrow, I'd still choose your safety over mine." Lena looks deeply into the ocean eyes in front of her.</p><p>Kara blushes for the millionth time today. She's honestly speechless and she surprises even herself. Kara is usually always the one to talk and know what to say, but something about the green eyes in front of her just leave her completely speechless and flustered. The teacher settles on giving the girl a bashful nod.</p><p>"And I just want to apologize in advance if I accidentally grab your hand or reach out to get something off your face when you're eating." Lena rocks back and forth on her heels. "I'm going to try my best to keep this..." She gestures between the two of them "platonic. But you were mine for 4 years so it'll take some getting used to."</p><p>Kara smiles fondly at the nervous brunette in front of her. She's mainly just glad she's not the only one who is nervous right now. "I understand, Lena. I won't get mad if you do those things. I get it." She sends a reassuring smile her way.</p><p>Lena returns it immediately. Kara’s smiles always had a knack for being quite contagious. "Good. Well I guess I'll be seeing you then." Lena offers a small wave even though every muscle in her body is screaming at her to take Kara into her arms.</p><p>Kara offers a small wave before turning on her heels and entering into her apartment. Lena waits by the door until she hears the lock click and then she descends back down the stairs and goes to the front office to sign her lease. Being a couple of steps away from Kara is better than being a half a world away from her. It's the small victories that Lena is learning to love the most.</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lena puts the finishing touches on her make up and slides on her black pantsuit. Today, she has a job interview for the Applied Arts Instructor position at National City University. One of her art friends from Venice mentioned that she had a friend in the area that worked at the college and last night she called Lena to tell her that she has a job interview at 5 pm.</p><p>After applying her red lipstick and fixing a few stray hairs, the artist grabs her car keys and heads to the door. She turns off her music and finds herself humming the last song that was playing while she was getting ready.</p><p>"'Cause I know I don't let you see, but you mean the world to me. And I know that I can be pretty mean…” The brunette sings as she exits her apartment and turns around to lock the door. "but you mean the world to me." She abruptly stops singing when she turns around and comes face to face with an amused Kara. A blush rises up to settle on the her cheeks.</p><p>“Freya Ridings, huh?” Kara smirks as she slings her guitar case on her back.</p><p>“Hell of a singer." Lena comments, praying her face isn't as red as it feels.</p><p>"Agreed." Kara smiles. "So where you headed, business woman?" Blue eyes scan the beautiful girl in front of them.</p><p>"Job interview." She smiles while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Guess you are headed to a gig?" Lena points to the guitar case sitting on the former teacher's back.</p><p>"Yep and I probably should go. Don't want to keep the fans waiting." The blonde chuckles as she sends Lena a quick wink and starts to descend down the stairs. Lena laughs and follows Kara down the stairs.</p><p>"See ya, Lena." Kara waves when they hit the bottom of the stairs and Lena frowns when she notices that Kara is walking away from the parking lot.</p><p>"Are you walking there?" Lena blurts out before Kara can take another step away from her.</p><p>The blonde turns around. "Yeah." She sighs. "The medical bills after the attack were fairly expensive and I just got them all paid off a couple of months ago. I guess a car has been the last thing on my mind." She shrugs. "Lucy usually drives me anywhere I want to go, but she's at work and the bar is only a mile away so I just walk."</p><p>The young teacher looks so small to Lena in the moment and all the green-eyed girl wants to do is scoop her up in her arms and protect her from the world. She knows she can't do that, so she brings her hand up to fiddle with the wedding band around her neck. Kara’s eyes fall as she watches Lena toy with the ring around her neck.</p><p>"Is that um..." The young blonde points to the round piece of jewelry.</p><p>"Yeah." Lena breathes out. "It was... well is yours."</p><p>"Oh." Is all the musician mutters. Kara never knew something so little could be strong enough to send the muscle in her chest all the way to her stomach. But it was.</p><p>Lena scratches the back of her neck, unsure of what to say as well. She has a lot to say, actually, but Kara wouldn't be comfortable hearing it. Not yet anyway. Lena despises awkwardness so she quickly tries to relieve some of it. She bows down and extends her hand to the girl in front of her. The blonde quirks an eyebrow up at Lena’s weird gesture, but doesn't say anything. "May I be your chauffeur for the day, Ms. Kara?" Lena tries out her best British accent and Kara doubles over laughing. When she finally composes herself, she sees that Lena is still bowed down dramatically.</p><p>Rolling her eyes playfully, Kara slides her hand in Lena’s and tries to mimic her horrible British accent. "I would be delighted if you would." Lena just shakes her head in amusement as she escorts Kara to the car, relishing in the feeling of the girl’s hand in hers again. After the two get settled in the car, Lena plugs in her phone and hands it over to Kara so she can DJ.<br/>The mirror's image</p><p>Lena could almost guess which songs Kara would pick. She bites back a smile as she listens to the girl belt out each song. The blonde would use her right fist as a microphone each time she would sing the chorus and Lena found it extremely endearing and quite amusing.</p><p>The green-eyed girl brings the car to a stop outside the bar and a frown washes over Kara’s features briefly when she sees that they are already at her place of work.</p><p>"You give me a ride and I repay you by practically busting your eardrums... and your speakers." Kara chuckles. "Sorry about that." She smiles sheepishly at the driver of the car.</p><p>"You never have to repay me for giving you a ride and you can bust my speakers and my eardrums anytime you want." Lena laughs as Kara slides out of the car and leans down in front of it, propping her elbows on the open window so she can make eye contact with the brunette.</p><p>"Goodluck at the interview. I hope I didn't make you late." Kara pats the car once and starts walking backwards toward the entrance of the bar, her eyes still locked with Lena’s. "Thanks again for the ride."</p><p>Lena waves and waits until Kara enters the bar. When the door closes, she quickly glances at the clock and sees that it is only 4:30 pm. She mentally high fives herself for her smart decision to leave the apartment an hour early.</p><p>The interview goes fairly well, considering that she is hired on the spot. The woman who interviews her is very pleased with Lena’s resume and mentions that their mutual friend put in a good word for for the green-eyed girl.</p><p>After the interview, she decides to make her way to the bar, in hopes that Kara’s set hasn't ended. As soon as she enters the dimly lit place, her ears are immediately graced with the sweet voice that gave her a private concert only a few hours ago. Lena’s heart flutters when she hears that Kara is singing the bridge of “You Mean The World To Me.” She wonders if the song was on her set list before their encounter this morning or if it was added after. Lena hopes it's the latter.</p><p>The brunette plops down on a bar stool and informs the bartender that she wants a whiskey neat. As soon as he hands her the drink, Kara starts strumming a different tune.</p><p>"This is an original." Kara informs the bar patrons.</p><p>Honey you are a rock</p><p>Upon which I stand</p><p>And I come here to talk</p><p>I hope you understand</p><p>That green eyes</p><p>Yeah the spotlight, shines upon you</p><p>And how could anybody deny you</p><p>Lena almost chokes on her drink when she hears Kara reference green eyes in yet another one of her songs. She places the glass down and spins around on her stool to give Kara her undivided attention for the rest of the song.</p><p>I came here with a load</p><p>And it feels so much lighter</p><p>Now I met you</p><p>And honey you should know</p><p>That I could never go on without you</p><p>Green eyes</p><p>Honey you are the sea</p><p>Upon which I float</p><p>And I came here to talk</p><p>I think you should know</p><p>Kara looks up and allows her eyes to roam the crowded bar. Her breath hitches when she sees a pair of green eyes staring back at her. She allows her mind to drift for a second as she wonders if her writing about green eyes and her fascination with green eyes stemmed from Lena, from her past with the girl. No, she couldn't remember the brunette who is currently watching her from across the bar, but maybe those green-eyes had such a huge impact on her that no man could beat the memories of them out of her head, no matter how hard they tried.</p><p>That green eyes</p><p>You're the one that I wanted to find</p><p>And anyone who tried to deny you</p><p>Must be out of their mind</p><p>Because I came here with a load</p><p>And it feels so much lighter</p><p>Since I met you</p><p>And honey you should know</p><p>That I could never go on without you</p><p>Green eyes</p><p>Honey you are the rock</p><p>Upon which I stand</p><p>As the song ends, Lena wonders if Kara wrote that song before or after she came back into town. And once again, Lena hopes the latter.</p><p>She breaks from her thoughts when she notices Kara walking her way. As soon as she makes it over to her, she immediately points to the drink in Lena’s hand when the bartender walks up to them. </p><p>“I’ll have what she’s having.” The blue-eyed girl addresses the bartender briefly before smiling fondly at the brunette.</p><p>Before either of them can strike up a conversation, a body collides with the table behind Lena, effectively knocking it and all of it's contents over. This startles both of the girls and Lena turns to watch as another man crouches down next to the man laying on the floor and quickly grabs a fistful of his shirt to bring him to a sitting position. When he does, he collides his fist with the man's jaw. After the third punch is thrown and one of the bartenders finally pries the man off of the bleeding man on the floor, Lena turns back around to see Kara’s reaction.</p><p>She curses herself when the blonde is no longer beside her. Of course something like this would set off a panic attack within the fragile girl. Lena frantically turns back to the bar and locks eyes with the bartender from earlier. He points to the back door, understanding the silent question that Lena’s asking him with her eyes. She immediately takes off to the back door and swings it open. Her heart breaks when she sees Kara curled up in a ball with her back against the brick wall of the bar.<br/>Lena slowly steps forward, Kara’s sobs becoming more apparent the closer she gets to her. The green-eyed girl slowly crouches down in front of the blonde, careful not to startle her.</p><p>"Kara." She whispers. The girl slowly raises her head and locks eyes with Lena’s sympathetic ones. Her breathing is still ragged and her eyes are wide. Lena reaches her right hand up and places it on Kara’s tear stained cheek. "Slow breaths, darling." Lena slows down her own breathing in attempt to get Kara to follow her lead.</p><p>Lena watches as she struggles to slow it down, but after about a minute of the green-eyed girl coaching her, Kara’s breathing finally returns to normal and her tears subside. The brunette slowly brings her left hand up and when it comes to rest on Kara’s other cheek, she uses both of her thumbs to wipe tears away.</p><p>"You're safe. You're okay." Lena cooes. Kara nods and offers Lena a small, grateful smile. The brunette stands up and for the second time today, she offers Kara her hand to take. The blonde accepts and allows Lena to pull her to her feet. The green-eyed girl's hand reflexively lands on Kara’s lower back as she is leading them both back into the bar.</p><p>Once they return to their previous spot, Lena notices a familiar dark-headed boy sitting on the bar stool. Kara stops in her tracks and Lena feels the girl tense up. The brunette drops her hand to her side and protectively takes a small step in front of Kara just as William turns to face them.</p><p>"What's wrong with you?" William asks as he takes in Kara’s disheveled appearance.</p><p>Kara looks down at her feet. "I had another uh panic attack." She mumbles.</p><p>"Seriously? It's been a year, Kara. I can't believe you are still having those." William rolls his eyes and takes a sip of his beer. Lena has to restrain herself from beating this asshole to a pulp. The only thing stopping her is her wife's well-being. Kara comes first. She always has.</p><p>"Yeah I know. I'm sorry, William." She whispers as she takes another step to stand closer to him. Lena wants nothing more than to just pull Kara away from him and tell her a million times over that she has nothing to be sorry for. She wants to drive her away from here, from him. Unfortunately, she has to just stand there because that's all she can do. Right now, anyway.</p><p>"It's okay. I just wanted you to be in a semi good mood tonight when we bang, but I guess that's out of the question, huh?" He chuckles bitterly as he downs the rest of his beer and stands to his feet. Kara just stands there, her eyes trained on the floor beneath her. The shame and embarrassment she feels rendering her completely speechless.</p><p>Lena’s stomach comes up in her throat as she clenches her fists tightly. She feels blood trickling from her palms, but the pain she feels in her chest far outweighs the pain she is unconsciously inflicting upon herself.</p><p>William slaps a five dollar bill on the counter and grabs Kara’s forearm. Lena’s eyes narrow in on the grip and she realizes that he is gripping her on the exact part of her arm that Lena inspected yesterday. The same part that is discolored from the previous times that he has forcefully grabbed her.</p><p>Kara shrugs him off. "I uh had plans with Lena tonight. We were going to grab food after my set." She trains her eyes on Lena, pleading for her to follow along.</p><p>"Yeah that's not happening. C'mon." He jerks her again.</p><p>"She said she has other plans." Lena speaks up and steps forward, her shoulder lightly brushing Kara’s.</p><p>"Do you have a problem." William steps forward and gets in Lena’s face. "You need to butt out of my relationship."</p><p>Kara’s heart races when she thinks about William hurting Lena. He has a temper and she doesn't want the whole bar to see it. Especially Lena. She doesn't want her to see it or feel the repercussions of it. So she does what she has to do. Even though its not necessarily what she wants to do.</p><p>"William." She places her hand on his shoulder. "I'll go with you. Just calm down."</p><p>Lena’s eyes flicker from William to Kara, silently pleading for her not to go with him. Kara looks away from the green eyes because she knows if she looks in them a second longer that they will convince her to stay.</p><p>"Maybe we can go get food another time." Kara offers Lena a small smile. The blonde just hopes it looks more reassuring than it feels. Lena just nods and runs her fingers through her hair. "I'll be seeing ya, Lena." The musician finally surrenders to William and lets him take her away from the green eyes that are still pleading for her to stay. The green eyes that she could write a million songs about.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next day, Lena hears a knock at her door and she groans before pressing pause on the show she's watching on Netflix. She is tempted to pretend she isn't home so she can continue to binge watch Orange is the New Black, but the possibility that it could be Kara makes her stand up and walk to the door. She swings the door open to find Lucy standing there, clad in a swimsuit coverup with an oversized sunhat on her head. When the door opens all the way, Lucy barges in.</p><p>"Go get on your swimsuit, dude. We are going to the beach." Lucy announces as she looks around Lena’s bare apartment. The green-eyed girl still has not gotten around to buying much for her new place. Luckily, the apartment came furnished with a couch and a bed or else she would have been sleeping on the floor.</p><p>"I was actually just going to be lazy today and watch Netflix." Lena pouts as she sits back down on the couch and folds her legs under her.</p><p>"Okay well Kar is going and she will be in a bikini." Lucy shrugs. "It's a skimpy little black one that I'm sure will get everyone's attention at the beach and I'm not really in the mood to help her fend off all the guys and gals."</p><p>Lena jumps up from the couch. "On second thought, it is a pretty day today so let me just go get on my bathing suit." She scrambles to her room. "I'll be ready in 10!" The brunette yells back over her shoulder and Lucy just chuckles.</p><p>As soon as all three girls are piled in Lena’s car, they head to pick up Nia and Alex before they make the hour drive to the nearest beach. When they arrive, Lucy eagerly slides out of the car with Nia in tow. Kara lightly chuckles and follows suit, Lena on her heels.</p><p>After setting their stuff down on the beach, Lucy turns to all four of the girls. "Who wants to swim?"</p><p>"I do, but I have to put on some sunscreen first." Kara responds while laying out her beach towel. "Come to think of it Lucy, I don't remember seeing you put any on." Kara raises an eyebrow and Lucy scoffs.</p><p>"I'm a golden goddess." Lucy brushes her hair over her shoulder dramatically. "I don't burn. I only tan... But I do get hot." She sets her sunhat on her beach bag and takes off running toward the water. "Last one to the ocean has to buy lunch!"</p><p>Alex and Nia chuckle and then look over at each other for a beat before taking off toward the water after Lucy. Neither one of them wants to pay for lunch.</p><p>"Such children." Kara shakes her head, an amused smile on her face. Before Lena can reply, the blonde unzips her pants and slides them down her toned legs. She then grabs the hem of her shirt and lifts it over her head. Lena allows herself to drink in her wife's beautiful body. It's been over a year since she last saw this much of Kara; hence the reason she cannot take her eyes off of the girl. She watches as Kara pulls out a bottle of sunscreen and starts rubbing the white liquid on her body. The green-eyed girl's mouth goes dry as she watches her wife run her hands all over her own body. Lena is thankful for the sunglasses covering her eyes so it isn't completely obvious that she is gawking.</p><p>The artist could have sworn it just got about 10 degrees hotter out here. Thanks to Kara. Lena starts to subtly fan herself with her book as she watches Kara’s hands run across her chest. Just when she thinks she can't get any more turned on, Kara speaks up.</p><p>“Lena, would you uh mind putting some sunscreen on my back?" Kara turns to the girl and smirks when she takes in her flustered state. After a couple of seconds, Lena realizes she's still staring and that she hasn't answered Kara yet so she clears her throat and and sets her book down on her towel.</p><p>"Yeah-h sure." Lena stutters as she eagerly scrambles to her feet.</p><p>"Thanks." Kara offers her a shy smile before laying stomach down on her pizza patterned beach towel.</p><p>Lena squirts a handful of the liquid into her palm and then momentarily rubs her hands together to warm the sunscreen up a bit so it's not too cold when she rubs it on the blonde’s back. She kneels down beside her and places her trembling hands on the soft skin. Carefully, she rubs the sunscreen all over Kara’s back.</p><p>Kara sucks in a breath when Lena’s hands land on her back. Suddenly her whole body feels like it has been set afire. She flutters her eyes closed, reveling in how good it feels to have someone touch her so tenderly. Lena’s skin is also burning as she runs her hands all over Kara’s back.</p><p>After applying the sunscreen to every crevice of Kara’s body, the green-eyed girl stands up and Kara frowns at the loss of contact. Part of her wants to go wash it all off just so Lena can reapply it. "I'm going to um wash my hands off." Lena clears her throat and starts walking to the ocean. When she reaches the blue water, she wades in knee deep and bends over to start washing her hands off. Before she can stand back up, she is tackled into the cool water. When she raises up again, she comes face to face with a laughing Kara. Lena playfully narrows her eyes at the girl.</p><p>"Thought you needed to cool off a bit." Kara states as she chuckles at the drenched girl before her.</p><p>"Oh you think this is funny, huh?" Lena challenges, one eyebrow quirked up. Kara brings her right hand up and puts a small space between her thumb and pointer finger while mouthing “a little.”</p><p>Lena smirks and starts walking toward her slowly. When the blonde notices, she starts to retreat back to the shore. Before she can reach it, Lena slings both arms around her waist and walks back toward the waves with Kara in tow.</p><p>“Lena, I'm sorry!" Kara squeals and kicks her feet in the air.</p><p>"You're gonna be." The green-eyed girl whispers in Kara’s ear before throwing herself in the water with the girl still in her arms. After a couple of seconds, she raises them both back up. Kara wriggles free from Lena’s grasp and turns to face her. They are both laughing uncontrollably and staring into each other's eyes. Eventually, the laughter dies down, but the staring doesn't. Like magnets, the two draw closer and closer until they both can almost feel other's breaths on their own lips. Before one of them can close the gap, Lucy speaks up.</p><p>"Ladies! You're all wet." Lucy smirks as she wades over. Lena narrows her eyes at the girl for ruining the moment and for the double meaning behind her choice of words. Kara turns around to face her best friend. Lena tries to say her witty comeback, but is once again submerged under water.</p><p>"Lucy!" Lena yells when she reemerges from the water.</p><p>Lucy shrugs as Alex and Nia wade over as well. "You looked like you were getting a little too hot and bothered. Someone needed to cool you off." Lena immediately blushes and slicks her dark hair back. She quickly looks around for Kara to see her reaction to what Lucy just said, but she is no longer beside them. She notices her exiting the water and Lena watches as she walks past their beach towels. This concerns the green-eyed girl so she quickly exits the water and follows her wife. Before she can get to her, Kara starts walking back in her direction with something in her arms.</p><p>"Lee, look!" The two finally meet in the middle and Lena can see that the girl's eyes are lit up. "I found a puppy."</p><p>Lena’s heart almost explodes because one, Kara called her Lee, an old nickname she had given her when they started dating back in college and two, Kara cuddling a puppy has to be the cutest thing she's ever seen.</p><p>"Hi there." Lena bends down to get eye level with the puppy. It has a brown coat and it looks like a chocolate lab. She brings her hand up to pet the puppy and it is then she notices how malnourished the puppy looks. She frowns and then notices that it doesn't have a collar.</p><p>"She-" Kara starts and then pauses, momentarily raising the puppy over her head "he looks hungry." The young musician frowns for a second and then her eyes light up when she thinks of an idea. She quickly scurries back to where their towels are set up and digs in her bag. She pulls out a banana and starts breaking it into little pieces and feeding it to the eager puppy in her lap. Lena watches in adoration as the little thing practically inhales the banana.</p><p>"He really seems to love bananas." Lena smiles as she watches Kara feed him another piece of the fruit.</p><p>Lucy, Nia, and Alex walk over a few minutes later and they all ooh and ahh over the adorable little thing. Kara watches as Lucy cuddles the puppy and another brilliant idea hits her.</p><p>"Luce?" Kara looks at Lucy, her eyes big and questioning. Having been friends with the blonde for most of her life, the brunette knows exactly what she wants.</p><p>"Nope. Not happening. You can go ahead and put those puppy dog eyes away." Lucy waves her hand dismissively in front of her. "I can barely take care of myself and our apartment."</p><p>Kara’s eyes grow sad and Lena swears Kara looks just like the puppies on the Sarah McLachlan commercials. Lucy may can say no to those big blue eyes, but Lena never could resist them.</p><p>"I'll take him." Lena announces and Kara perks up.</p><p>"You will?" She smiles, the corners of her mouth reaching to her eyes.</p><p>"On one condition." Lena holds up her pointer finger.</p><p>"Anything." Kara blurts out and the other four girls laugh at her eagerness. Lena could have sworn she heard Lucy whisper something inappropriate, but she's too focused on Kara to chastise the girl.</p><p>"You help me take care of him and you name him." Lena smiles when she watches her wife's eyes light up.</p><p>"Duh." Kara blurts out.</p><p>Lucy places her hand over her chest dramatically. “My sass is rubbing off on her. I'm proud." Everyone rolls their eyes.</p><p>"So is that a yes?" Lena nudges the blonde’s shoulder with her own.</p><p>"Yes! A million times yes!" Kara claps her hands together happily and leans over to plant a quick kiss on Lena’s cheek before crawling over to sit by Lucy so she can pet the puppy. A jolt of electricity shoots through the green-eyed girl and she blushes furiously.</p><p>Lucy, not even bothering to wipe her smirk off, speaks up. "So this little guy needs a name." She continues to pet him. "I personally like Lucy Jr."</p><p>Nia snorts and kisses Lucy’s temple. "Of course you do."</p><p>"I am not naming my first dog Lucy Jr." Kara reaches out and takes the dog back into her arms. "Save that name for your first child."</p><p>Nia swats Kara’s arm and glares at her. "Don't give her any ideas." The musician just laughs when Lucy places her hand back on her chest again, an offended look on her features instead of a proud one.</p><p>Kara turns to Lena with curious eyes. “Lena, what’s your middle name?”</p><p>“Kieran.” She answers nonchalantly.</p><p>"Kieran." The young blonde tries the name out on her tongue as she stares at the puppy in her lap. "He kind of looks like a Kieran." A small smile graces her lips.</p><p>“You want to name him after me?” Lena questions.</p><p>Kara whips out her phone and googles the name. “It’s perfect! The name Kieran means ‘dark-haired' and his coat is dark.” Kara slowly takes the puppy in her arms and stands up. "This little guy is tired and probably thirsty so we should get him home." She looks at Lena and the green-eyed girl nods in agreement.</p><p>Lena gives Kara the keys to her car and tells her to go ahead and get settled in while she gets their bags. Nia and Alex follow her and Lena watches fondly as Alex drapes an arm across her sister’s shoulders and pulls her in close as they walk. Lucy, however, stays back with the green-eyed girl to help her carry everything.</p><p>“She named the dog after you… my ship is sailing.” Lucy speaks up as the two make their way back to the pier, beach bags in tow. Lena playfully pushes the brunette before making her way to her car. A small smile forms on her lips when she sees her favorite girl holding their new puppy.</p><p>While everyone is getting settled in, Lena takes a moment to lean over and pet the puppy that’s currently asleep in Kara’s arms. “Kara and Kieran. What a duo."</p><p>"Trio." Kara interjects. "We are in this together." She smiles briefly at Lena and then looks at the sleeping puppy in her arms like it's the most precious thing in the world. Lena smiles too because she is very familiar with that look.</p><p>It's the same one she is giving Kara right now.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Alright boy, I have to go to work, but I'll be back this afternoon." Lena promises as she picks up the puppy. She momentarily snuggles him to her before setting him back down and refilling his food and water bowls. The girl smiles as she watches him saunter over to his paw-print patterned bed and lay his head on his front paws.</p>
<p>With a smile on her face and a cup of coffee in her hand, the green-eyed girl makes her way out the door and heads to her new job. When she arrives, she is immediately shown to her new classroom. Her eyes light up when she stands in front of the black door wearing a name plate that has Mrs. Luthor-Danvers etched on it. When she enters the room that now belongs to her, she allows her eyes to scan over everything inch of it. There are 20 chairs and a painting easel in front of each one. Blank canvasses and bottles of paint occupy the wooden shelves at the back of the room.</p>
<p>Her morning goes by relatively fast. She teaches two art classes in the morning and one after lunch. After teaching the second class, she grabs her purse and heads to the door to go get lunch. During her tour of the school this morning, her boss informed her that she could in fact leave for lunch and then come back if she wanted. Though that is what she is doing today, she vowed to herself that she would start bringing her lunch from home most days because eating out can be bad for you if it's done too often.</p>
<p>When she steps out of her new room, she comes face to face with an unfamiliar dark-headed man.</p>
<p>"You must be Ms. Luthor." He speaks up before Lena can get a word out.</p>
<p>"Yes, I am Mrs. Luthor-Danvers.” The new art teacher corrects the stranger politely.</p>
<p>The dark-headed man offers a tight smile before extending his hand to the brunette. "I'm Jack. I teach graphic design."</p>
<p>Lena takes the awaiting hand in hers. "Lena. Nice to meet you."</p>
<p>"Nice to meet you." The man grins while not so subtly checking out the brunette.</p>
<p>Lena clears her throat awkwardly. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going for-"</p>
<p>"Damn." Jack interrupts, biting his lip as she looks past a confused and slightly annoyed Lena. "Blondes are my favorite."</p>
<p>Lena furrows her eyebrows before spinning around to see what the man is looking at. Her eyes widen when she sees Kara and Lucy walking toward her, a sack and drink in tow. Lena smiles, Jack’s remarks leaving her mind when she locks eyes with the blue eyes that are thankfully drawing closer to her.</p>
<p>"Mmmm." Jack bites his lip again and Lena looks over at the man oggling at her wife. She just huffs and closes the gap between her and the two girls.</p>
<p>"Kara, hey." Lena breathes out when she finds herself standing right in front of the blonde.</p>
<p>"Hey, Lee." Kara smiles at the green-eyed girl. "We uh brought you lunch since it's your first day and all." She extends the sack and drink to the green-eyed girl before tucking her hands in her back pockets. Lena takes them and offers her a grateful smile.</p>
<p>"You're the best." Lena mumbles as she digs through the paper sack. Burger and fries. Her favorite.</p>
<p>"The nerve." Lucy scoffs after having witnessed the entire interaction. "I drove her ass through the drive thru and then drove her here and I don't even get a thank you."</p>
<p>"Lucy." Kara slaps her friend on the arm. “Leave my ass out of this.” She whispers through her teeth.</p>
<p>Lena chuckles at the two best friends, but stops abruptly when Kara narrows her eyes at her.</p>
<p>"Your ass is quite perfect if you ask me." Jack pipes up as he takes a step closer to the blonde. "Jack." The man extends her hand and Kara timidly shakes it.</p>
<p>"Kara." She blushes and shyly ducks her head.</p>
<p>"Pretty name for a pretty girl." Jack winks.</p>
<p>The green-eyed girl, having enough of the man flirting with her wife, clears her throat loudly. "You guys gonna stay and eat?" Lena asks hopefully.</p>
<p>"I would, but I have to rehearse for my gig tonight." Kara frowns. "I'm singing a new song I wrote."</p>
<p>"Can't wait to hear it." Lena smiles fondly and it widens when the musician's eyes light up.</p>
<p>"Are you coming?" She asks excitedly.</p>
<p>"Wouldn't miss it." Lena promises.</p>
<p>“Great, see ya then. Enjoy the food." Kara nods her head and then turns and walks toward the door.</p>
<p>"Kara." Lena calls out before handing Lucy her drink to hold while she removes her lanyard from around her neck and takes a silver key off. "Kieran misses you." She walks up to the blue-eyed girl and hands her the key to her apartment.</p>
<p>"Thank god, I never thought you'd offer it up." Kara takes the key and smirks at Lena.</p>
<p>The green-eyed girl rolls her eyes playfully. "Kara Danvers. Was this lunch your way of bribing me so I would give you the key to my apartment so you could see Kieran?" Lena feigns shock.</p>
<p>"So what if it was, Luthor?" Kara starts back peddling toward the exit, the smirk still present on her face. "It worked, didn't it?"</p>
<p>Lena shakes her head, a smile gracing her lips. Kara offers her a wink before turning around and exiting the building.</p>
<p>"You two." Lucy shakes her head while handing Lena’s drink back to her. "You got it bad, dude." She pats the green-eyed girl on the shoulder before following Kara.</p>
<p>"Lucy." Lena yells and the girl turns around. "Drive safe, okay?"</p>
<p>“You have my entire world in your hands.” Lena wanted to add in.</p>
<p>"I'll keep her safe, Lena." Lucy smiles knowingly at the new teacher.</p>
<p>"Is she seeing anyone?" Jack chimes in after both girls have left.</p>
<p>“Who? Lucy?" Lena turns to face her new flirty colleague.</p>
<p>"No. Kara." He asks, his eyes still locked on the door that Kara just exited from.</p>
<p>"Yeah, she's off limits." Lena informs the man before walking into her classroom. She may kill the guy if she stands there any longer.</p>
<p>"That's never stopped me before." Jack says right before Lena shuts her classroom door. The art teacher grips the drink in her hand so tightly that the lid pops off. She decides to set the drink down on her desk before she can damage it any more. After she gets some food in her, the rage caused by her dark-headed colleague leaves and she finally allows herself to smile again when she thinks about the fact that Kara brought her lunch. That smile doesn't fade for the rest of the day.</p>
<p>After teaching her last class of the day, the green-eyed girl heads home to change and play with Kieran. A couple of hours and an outfit change later, she gets in the car and heads to hear her favorite musician.</p>
<p>She sits down at her favorite spot in the bar and the bartender brings her her usual. A few minutes later, Kara takes the makeshift stage at the back of the room and Lena spins around so that she can give her all her attention. As usual, the girl covers a few of her favorite songs by some of her favorite artists. Finally, she introduces her original song and Lena’s heart beats faster.</p>
<p>"This is an original." Kara informs the audience before turning her attention back to the guitar sitting in her lap. "As many of you know, I was in an accident about a year ago. Well I recently found it tucked away in an old bag of mine and I didn't remember it so I realized that I wrote it before my accident." She continues to strum the guitar. "I hope you like it."</p>
<p>I met you in the dark<br/>
You lit me up<br/>
You made me feel as though<br/>
I was enough<br/>
We danced the night away<br/>
We drank too much<br/>
I held your hair back when<br/>
You were throwing up</p>
<p>Then you smiled over your shoulder<br/>
For a minute I was stone-cold sober<br/>
I pulled you closer to my chest<br/>
And you asked me to stay over<br/>
I said, I already told you<br/>
I think that you should get some rest</p>
<p>I knew I loved you then<br/>
But you'd never know<br/>
'Cause I played it cool when I was scared of letting go<br/>
I knew I needed you<br/>
But I never showed<br/>
But I wanna stay with you<br/>
Until we're grey and old<br/>
Just say you won't let go<br/>
Just say you won't let go</p>
<p>I wake you up with some breakfast in bed<br/>
I'll bring you coffee<br/>
With a kiss on your head<br/>
And I'll take the kids to school<br/>
Wave them goodbye<br/>
And I'll thank my lucky stars for that night</p>
<p>When you looked over your shoulder<br/>
For a minute, I forget that I'm older<br/>
I wanna dance with you right now, oh<br/>
And you look as beautiful as ever<br/>
And I swear that every day you'll get better<br/>
You make me feel this way somehow</p>
<p>I'm so in love with you<br/>
And I hope you know<br/>
Darling, your love is more than worth its weight in gold<br/>
We've come so far my dear<br/>
Look how we've grown<br/>
And I wanna stay with you<br/>
Until we're grey and old<br/>
Just say you won't let go<br/>
Just say you won't let go</p>
<p>I wanna live with you<br/>
Even when we're ghosts<br/>
'Cause you were always there for me<br/>
When I needed you most</p>
<p>Lena’s heart beats faster with every word that Kara sings. Her wife has always had a way with words and Lena knows that if she wrote this before her accident, that she probably wrote it about her. The brunette's thoughts are interrupted when she hears the chimes on the door ding, signaling that someone has entered. She momentarily looks over and then turns her attention back to Kara. That doesn't last long because as soon as her mind registers who just entered the bar, she whips her head back to the entrance. Rage washes over her and she walks over to the couple standing by the door.</p>
<p>I'm gonna love you 'til<br/>
My lungs give out<br/>
I promise till death we part<br/>
Like in our vows<br/>
So I wrote this song for you<br/>
Now everybody knows<br/>
That it's just you and me<br/>
Until we're grey and old<br/>
Just say you won't let go<br/>
Just say you won't let go</p>
<p>Just say you won't let go<br/>
Oh, just say you won't let go</p>
<p>As she's walking toward the door, the bar erupts into cheers as Kara’s song comes to an end.</p>
<p>"Lena." The woman breathes out as the green-eyed girl approaches her. "What are you doing here?"</p>
<p>"Not here." Lena points to the door and the couple exits again, the brunette following close behind.</p>
<p>"You didn't tell her about me?!" Lena yells as soon as the door closes. She decides to just cut right to the chase. "I get you didn't approve of our relationship, but you're her parents and you have been lying to her since she had the accident."</p>
<p>"We just got her back, Lena, and we know if we told her she'd leave again. She'd leave because of what we did and she'd leave so she could find you." Eliza speaks up.</p>
<p>"She was my wife for fucks sake." The green-eyed girl seethes. "And you just led her to believe I didn't even exist.</p>
<p>"We thought you were out of the picture since she was alone." Jeremiah speaks up.</p>
<p>Lena laughs bitterly. "You knew where we lived because Kara sent you guys postcards all the time. Even if you didn’t approve, she still loved you guys no matter what. Hell, we even sent you two a picture of us at our wedding. A wedding you refused to attend." The fuming brunette narrows her eyes at the couple. "And I know you saw the bombings on the news. Did you ever think for one second that maybe we didn't want to be separated?"</p>
<p>"We thought you were dead, okay?" Eliza throws her hands up. "And if Kara didn't remember you, then why would we try to make her? Kara woke up from her coma and she was happy. We were all a family again and we were happy. So no, Lena, we didn't mention you."</p>
<p>Lena feels angry tears run down her face. "That wasn't your decision to make. It was hers."</p>
<p>"She's right." All three heads turn in the direction of the door. Kara steps forward, an unreadable expression sketched across her beautiful features. "That wasn't your decision to make."</p>
<p>"Kara." Jeremiah steps forward. "She took you from us and we just wanted our daughter back."</p>
<p>"You forced her away. You disowned her for loving me. I took care of her. I became her family." Lena defends her actions.</p>
<p>Eliza opens her mouth to speak, but Kara beats her to it. "I saw pictures of the two of us. I saw the love in my eyes and I know my own real smiles from my fake ones. Trust me."</p>
<p>"We were only trying to do right by you. Every person around here with the last name Luthor is a monster we wanted to protect you from them.” Eliza sighs.</p>
<p>“I read up on her family and what they did. I know her brother killed innocent people and her mother tried to cover it up, but they are both in jail and Lena is not. She had no part in it and she is not her family.” Kara runs a shaky hand through her hair. “You had a picture in your house of me on my wedding day and you conveniently never showed it to me for a year." Kara takes a step forward to them, her jaw clenched. “You tried to ruin my relationship with Alex by giving her an ultimatum. You brainwashed her into thinking Lena was bad.”</p>
<p>Eliza and Jeremiah hang their heads.</p>
<p>“Well guess what? Alex and Lena are okay now. They are friends. Alex finally got to know Lena and form her own opinion of her. Please, just don’t come here again. Not unless you come back with an open mind and decide that you want to get to know who the real Lena is.” She takes a step away from them.</p>
<p>"Kara." Eliza steps forward.</p>
<p>“Please just go.” The brunette looks everywhere but at the couple in front of her. When they finally get the hint, they walk away. Once they are out of sight, Kara turns to Lena. She offers her a sad smile before reaching up and wiping the green-eyed girl's tears away. Lena offers her a shaky smile in return, silently thanking her for believing her and for drying her tears.</p>
<p>"I mentioned them so many times." Kara sighs after she drops her hand back to her side. "Why didn't you say anything?"</p>
<p>"It wasn't my place." Lena runs her fingers through her hair.</p>
<p>Kara nods. "I understand why you didn't. I would've done the same thing." She searches the emerald eyes in front of her. "But I want you to know you could've told me."</p>
<p>Lena nods and Kara continues.</p>
<p>"What exactly happened? I'm guessing there was a falling out of some sorts." Kara asks and Lena takes a breath before explaining the situation to the curious brunette in front of her.</p>
<p>__________________</p>
<p>Flashback</p>
<p>__________________</p>
<p>"I miss you." Kara pouts into the phone.</p>
<p>"Darling, I literally just dropped you off like 10 minutes ago." Lena chuckles.</p>
<p>"I know, but I already miss you. Sue me.” Kara retorts playfully. “Ugh I’m so ready for this break to end so we can be back at college and see each other more.”</p>
<p>“Well I never left, but you need to spend some time with your family. I know how important that is to you, but I miss you too. So much.” Lena admits, a small smile gracing her lips.</p>
<p>"You better, Luthor.” Kara answers. Before one of them can respond, they both hear a loud voice coming from outside Kara’s door.</p>
<p>"Kara!" Jeremiah yells before bursting into the room, Eliza on his heels. “Someone I work with called me just now to let me know that they just saw you out with Lena Luthor. Lena Luthor? Really Kara? Of all the people you could date, you choose Lena Luthor?”</p>
<p>Kara’s face pales and she grips the phone in her hand tighter.</p>
<p>"Kara weren't you with Lucy tonight?" Eliza chimes in.</p>
<p>The brunette swallows the lump in her throat. “I was with Lena." She ducks her head and her parent's eyes widen.</p>
<p>"You will stop seeing her right now. I will not have my daughter dating a Luthor. That family is despicable and no one likes them. Do you know how people will treat me if they find out my daughter is dating Lena Luthor?” Jeremiah shouts and she flinches at his harsh tone.</p>
<p>"It's my life and I'm not going to stop seeing her. I love her. If you got to know her you’d love-” Kara tries to finish her sentence, but Jeremiah interrupts her.</p>
<p>"Either you end it or you get out of my house." He points to the door.</p>
<p>“Dad, please just listen..." Kara begs as she stands up from the bed.</p>
<p>"Are you going to stop seeing her?" He questions.</p>
<p>"No." Kara answers simply, as if it's the easiest question she's ever been asked.</p>
<p>Jeremiah shakes his head in understanding and walks into his daughter's closet. He grabs a handful of clothes and walks out of her room, Kara following close behind. In one swift motion, he opens the front door and tosses the clothes on the front lawn.</p>
<p>"You no longer live here then." He narrows his eyes at his daughter before retreating back to her room and emerging with another pile of clothes.</p>
<p>“Dad, please stop." Kara begs, tears pooling in her eyes.</p>
<p>Lena, having heard the entire conversation, turns her car around and starts driving back over to her girlfriend's house. "I'm coming, darling.” Lena says, even though she knows Kara can't hear her over the shouting.</p>
<p>Having finished tossing her clothes out, Jeremiah starts throwing out the rest of her belongings. No matter how many times Kara screams or how hard she cries, he doesn't stop.</p>
<p>When Lena finally pulls up to the house, she sees Kara desperately picking up handfuls of clothes and trying to take them back into the house. Lena’s heart breaks, but her sadness turns to rage as soon as she sees Jeremiah block the entrance.</p>
<p>"Please." Kara pleads. "I can't help who I love." She drops the clothes to her feet.</p>
<p>"Yes you can." He answers sternly and shuts the door in her face. As Lena exits her car, she sees Kara banging her fists on the door repeatedly. Lena sprints up the driveway and takes the sobbing girl into her arms.</p>
<p>Kara flinches at first, but then relaxes into the hug when she gets a whiff of Lena’s perfume.</p>
<p>"I'm here, darling." Lena cooes as she spins the girl around and wraps her in a bear hug. "It's okay. I've got you." Lena whispers in her ear as she strokes her hair.</p>
<p>"I don't have anywhere to go. The dorms are closed right now I don’t-” Kara hiccups.</p>
<p>“Yes, you do." Lena pulls away from the hug, but keeps her at arms length so she can look her in the eyes. "My home is your home always, Kara." She promises as she wipes Kara’s tears away.</p>
<p>"They don't love me, Lena. My own parents don't love me." Kara admits, her hands coming up to cover her face. Lena quickly intercepts them and brings them up to her lips. She plants a quick kiss to the back of both of her palms.</p>
<p>“They still love you, darling. They just don’t love me, but I’m sure they will come around.” Lena tells her as she lifts up her chin with her finger. “But I love you so much. More than anything, Kara."</p>
<p>"I love you too, Lee." Kara’s bottom lip quivers. "You're my home."</p>
<p>"You're my heart." Lena replies before placing a tender kiss on the girl's lips. "Now, go sit in the car and I'll load your stuff up, okay?"</p>
<p>The blonde nods and goes to turn around, when she does, she sees Alex standing at the end of the driveway with wide eyes. “I didn’t tell them, I promise.”</p>
<p>“I know.” Kara runs to the end of the driveway and launches herself in Alex’s arms. “They kicked me out." She cries into her sister's shirt and Alex’s heart breaks.</p>
<p>“I’ll fix this. I will, I promise.” Alex pulls away from the hug and kisses Kara’s temple. “Go stay with Lena.”</p>
<p>Kara nods solemnly. Alex wipes some tears from her face before making her way to her childhood home. Lena puts an arm around Kara’s waist and leads her to the car. She opens the car door for her and helps her into the passenger's seat. After quickly kissing her temple, she shuts the car door and starts picking up all of Kara’s belongings. She places them in the car and once she is finished, she slides back into the vehicle and looks over at Kara. The girl has her feet in the seat, her chin resting on her knees and her arms loosely wrapped around her slender legs. Lena reaches out and tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear. A few tears leak from her eyes and Lena’s thumb brushes them away before they can drip off her chin and join the rest of the tears that have already soaked into her shirt. The blue-eyed girl scoots over in her seat so she can lay her head on Lena’s shoulder. The green-eyed girl places a quick kiss to the crown of her head before driving them to her apartment in the city. A place where Kara will be accepted and loved at all times.</p>
<p>___________________________</p>
<p>End of Flashback</p>
<p>___________________________</p>
<p>“Well I guess Alex never got through to them.” Kara drops her gaze down to their interlocked hands briefly before returning it to Lena. "Thank you for being there for me then and now. You're a selfless person Lena Luthor. I can see why I married you."</p>
<p>"You what?" Both girls jump and Kara quickly releases Lena’s hand when she hears the familiar voice.</p>
<p>“William, I-" Kara tries to explain.</p>
<p>"What are you talking about?" He angrily steps toward them and Lena angles her body a bit so she's in front of Kara.</p>
<p>"Lena was my wife before the accident." Kara ducks her head, not being able to look the boy in his eyes.</p>
<p>William’s eyes widen in shock. "You were married to a Luthor?"</p>
<p>Kara just nods.</p>
<p>“Now I know why she's so stuck up your ass." William laughs bitterly, his eyes narrowed at the blonde. "Are you cheating on me?"</p>
<p>"No, William I swear." Kara’s eyes grow wide with fear.</p>
<p>"We'll talk about this more at my place." William takes a quick swig of his beer before spinning around and tossing the bottle at the wall behind them. Kara flinches and it doesn't go unnoticed by Lena. "Away from her. Let's go."</p>
<p>Kara starts to walk forward, but Lena stops her. "He's been drinking, Kara. You don't need to get in the car with him."</p>
<p>Blue eyes flicker from Lena’s worried eyes to William's angry ones.</p>
<p>"Don't test me." William spits out and neither one of the girls know which one of them he is addressing.</p>
<p>"I'm driving." Kara steps forward and grabs his keys before turning to Lena. "I'll be okay." She assures her.</p>
<p>"Please don't go.” Lena pleads, ignoring William’s scoff. Before he can react, Kara starts pushing him toward his car.</p>
<p>"Back the fuck off." He yells back to Lena as Kara drags him away.</p>
<p>"Kara." Lena yells before she gets in the car. The blonde turns around. "Call me if you need me." The girl just smiles and nods while Lena stands there.</p>
<p>Lena watches Kara leave, feeling a lot like a wife who is watching her soldier go off to war. Though Kara won't be on an actual battlefield, she still will be going to battle. With William. Unarmed. Battles are fought when one enters enemy territory, a place where Kara is headed right now.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara wakes up to the ringing of her phone and she blindly reaches for it on her nightstand, a low groan escaping her lips.</p><p>"Hello?" She answers groggily, her voice thick with sleep.</p><p>"Hey, sleepyhead." Lena chuckles into the receiver. Her wife never was a morning person.</p><p>"Lee, it's so early." The blonde whines after glancing at the clock on her bedside table.</p><p>"Kara, it's noon." Lena informs the girl.</p><p>"Exactly my point. That's early." The girl protests while burying her head further into her pillow.</p><p>"Well if you don't want to get up, I guess Kieran and I will just go to the park and get frozen yogurt by oursel-"</p><p>"I'm up!" Kara announces as she shoots up from the bed. Lena lets out a hearty laugh, having known that Kara wouldn't choose sleep over yogurt and a cute puppy. "I'll be ready in 15. And Lee?"</p><p>"Hmm?" The brunette answers.</p><p>"I'm at William’s, so I'll text you the address." Kara informs her before pressing the end button.</p><p>It's been almost a week since Kara last saw any of her friends or her sister. She told them that she was with William visiting his parents, but truth be told, William was visiting his parents while Kara was hiding out in his apartment all week. When Kara went home with William after the fight, they got into an argument, which led to him giving her a shiner on her right eye and a few other bruises.</p><p>“He's just drunk. He can't help it. He doesn't mean it.” She told herself over and over again as she quietly cried herself to sleep.</p><p>When she woke up the morning after, the bruises looked so bad and she knew she couldn't face any of the girls. Especially Lena. She knew if they saw her like that, it would be the last straw and they would confront the boy, which would only make him 10x angrier and make the situation 10x worse. So she lied and stayed away. </p><p>As she stares at her reflection in the bathroom mirror, she brings her right hand up to her face to trace the black bruise around her eye that is still visible after three coats of concealer. The brunette huffs and goes to grab her black RayBans. Luckily, they are going to the park today so she won't have to take them off and when they go get frozen yogurt, she will just offer to stay outside with Kieran while Lena goes in.</p><p>A few minutes later, there is a knock at her door and she quickly slides her sunglasses on before grabbing her purse off the counter and opening the wooden door. She finds the brunette standing on the other side of it and she can't help the smile that tugs at her lips when she is once again reminded of just how chivalrous the green-eyed girl is.</p><p>"Good afternoon." Lena smiles when the blonde opens the door. "Or should I say good morning to you."</p><p>"Funny." The blue-eyed girl scoffs playfully before exiting the apartment and walking alongside Lena to the car. The green-eyed girl opens the car door for Kara and the latter offers her a grateful smile. When Kara sees her sleeping puppy curled up on the seat of the car she lets out a squeal.</p><p>“Hi, baby." She cooes as she carefully picks up the puppy and sits down, placing him on her legs. A smile tugs at her lips when she sees the new blue collar that is wrapped around his neck and it only gets bigger when she traces her fingers over the stitching on it that spells out 'Kieran.'</p><p>After she is done oohing and aahing over the sleeping puppy, she remembers her good news and turns to Lena. "So guess what."</p><p>"What?" The green-eyed girl asks, momentarily taking her eyes off the road to steal a glance at the girl in her passenger's seat.</p><p>"I got an email from a talent scout from Atlantic Records last night. He said he saw some videos of me on YouTube and he wants to meet with me." The blonde informs her chauffeur.</p><p>"What?!" Lena shouts, effectively startling Kara and the sleeping puppy in her lap.<br/>"Kara, that's great! Are you going to meet with him?"</p><p>The musician just shrugs. "Yeah, I guess. I mean I have nothing to lose."</p><p>"Wow. I'm so proud of you." Lena states and she wholeheartedly means it. She is so very proud of the girl. "A year ago you wouldn't sing for anyone. I even had to beg you to sing for me. It was like 3 months into our relationship when you finally caved." Lena smiles fondly as she remembers the first time Kara sang for her.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"Kar, please sing one of your songs for me. Reading your song lyrics is great, but I really want to hear them." Lena pleads with her girlfriend as she holds Kara’s songbook in her hands.</p><p>"Lee, I told you I don't sing in front of people." Kara takes the book from the girl's hands and places it in her desk drawer.</p><p>"Well lucky for you, I'm not people. I'm your girlfriend." Lena smiles softly at the stubborn blonde before wrapping her arms around her waist and bringing her closer.</p><p>"Ugh fine." Kara relents when she locks eyes with the pleading green ones. "I'll sing you one original song, but that's it." The musician holds up her pointer finger and Lena leans in and kisses the tip of it before planting a soft kiss on the girl's lips.</p><p>"Thank you, darling." Lena takes a seat on the bed as she watches Kara grab her guitar and come to sit next to her. She strums a few notes before she finally starts to sing.</p><p>I've been beaten down,<br/>I've been kicked around,<br/>But she takes it all for me.<br/>And I lost my faith,<br/>In my darkest days,<br/>But she makes me want to believe.</p><p>They call her love, love, love, love, love.<br/>They call her love, love, love, love, love.</p><p>She is love, and she is all I need.</p><p>She's all I need.</p><p>Well, I had my ways,<br/>They were all in vain,<br/>But she waited patiently.<br/>It was all the same,<br/>All my pride and shame,<br/>And she put me on my feet.</p><p>They call her love, love, love, love, love.<br/>They call her love, love, love, love, love.<br/>They call her love, love, love, love, love.</p><p>She is love, and she is all I need.</p><p>And when that world slows down, dear.<br/>And when those stars burn out, here.<br/>Oh she'll be there, yes she'll be there,</p><p>They call her love, love, love, love, love.<br/>They call her love, love, love, love, love.<br/>They call her love, love, love, love, love.</p><p>She is love, and she is all I need,<br/>She is love, and she is all I need,<br/>She is love, and she is all I need.</p><p>She's all I need.</p><p>Kara strums the last note on her guitar before looking up at Lena, signaling that the song is over.</p><p>"Babe! That was amazing!" The green-eyed girl tackles her girlfriend down on the bed and plants wet kisses all over her face.</p><p>"Lena Kieran you're getting me all wet." Kara shouts when Lena continues to place wet slobbery kisses down her chin and on her neck. </p><p>The brunette stops immediately and looks at her girlfriend with raised eyebrows. "Oh, I'm getting you wet, huh?" She smirks mischievously and Kara covers her face in embarrassment after she realizes what she said. Lena just leans down and places her lips next to her girlfriend's ear. "You can get me wet any time you want, Kara." She husks.</p><p>Kara slowly removes her hands from her face and looks into her favorite pair of green-eyes that have almost turned completely black with lust. She leans up and captures Lena’s red lips in hers before quickly rolling them over and pinning Lena down on the bed. "I vote now."<br/>________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>________________</p><p>"Lena?" Kara waves her hand in front of the girl's face.</p><p>"Hmm?" The brunette snaps out of her trance.</p><p>"I asked if there is anything else different about me?" The blonde questions.</p><p>Lena looks over at her, a smile still etched on her features from the memory that was just replayed in her head. "Actually, that's the only thing. You're still the same bubbly, hilarious, kind-hearted, beautiful girl that I fell in love with."</p><p>Kara just nods, a blush rising to her cheeks. Lena seems to always know the right things to say to turn her into a flustered mess.</p><p>A few minutes later and Lena pulls into the park and turns off the car. The family of three plays for about an hour at the park. Well Lena and Kara play and Kieran just sleeps on the grass beneath him. Lena makes sure to remind Kara every chance she gets that Kieran is definitely hers considering how much he sleeps. That comment always earns the brunette a playful slap on her upper arm.</p><p>Most of their time is spent attempting to get Kieran to stop sleeping and fetch the stick Lena keeps throwing. The green-eyed girl just feels like she's playing fetch with Kara though, considering the musician is the one to go retrieve the stick every time she throws it. After the girls wear themselves out, they decide to go get frozen yogurt. Kara opts to stay outside with Kieran while Lena goes to get them both treats. When Lena returns, Kara smiles mischievously.</p><p>"So lets see if you really know me as well as you claim you do." Kara sets the puppy down on the sidewalk, still clutching his leash tightly in her left hand so she doesn't lose him.</p><p>Lena smirks as she hands the girl the cup of yogurt. "Oh, I know you." She comments and the blue-eyed girl just smiles at her before bringing the spoon to her mouth and taking a bite.</p><p>"Banana frozen yogurt with Sour Patch Kids on top." She smacks her lips dramatically while Lena takes a bite of her orange sherbet. "You failed. I wanted vanilla with gummy bears.</p><p>"Nice try, but that's exactly what you would have gotten for yourself and you know it." Lena challenges.</p><p>"You're right. You passed with flying colors, Luthor." Kara smiles as she digs her spoon into the yogurt again. The two girls eat in silence, as they sit at a table outside the yogurt place; Kara occasionally feeding Kieran some of her yogurt and Lena scrunching her face up in disgust when she watches Kara feed herself a bite with the same spoon she just used to feed the puppy.</p><p>"Kara, you do know he's a dog and not a human, right?" Lena scrunches her nose up as she watches Kara feed the puppy yet another bite of yogurt.</p><p>"Wrong." Kara drops the spoon back in the cup before snuggling the dog closer to her. "He's my fur baby."</p><p>Lena goes to respond, but is interrupted by Kara’s phone ringing.</p><p>"Talk to me, Luce." The musician lifts the phone to her ear.</p><p>"Could you just for once in your life answer the phone normally?" Lucy asks when Kara answers.</p><p>"Nope." Kara answers bluntly. "Now what's up? You’re interrupting my quality time with my child."</p><p>"The nerve." Lucy shakes her head. "I was calling to see if you wanted to go out tonight with Nia and I, but I don't know if I want your rude self to go anymore." The brunette scoffs.</p><p>“Yeah, I'll go." Kara agrees. "Lena is here with me so I'll ask her too."</p><p>"Oh, I see. No wonder you are so eager to get off the phone. You said you were spending time with your child, but you're really spending time with your daddy." Lucy mumbles and Kara’s face visibly reddens.</p><p>"Lucy Lane." Kara chastises her best friend.</p><p>"I'm hilarious." Lucy praises herself. "Nia, you're a lucky girl." She turns to inform her fiancé who is sitting beside her and the said girl just shakes her head, a small smile playing on her lips.</p><p>Kara just rolls her eyes. "Hanging up now. I'll get ready tonight at William’s since most of my stuff is there so just come pick me up there." The blonde says before hanging up and turning her attention back to an amused Lena.</p><p>"Lucy say something inappropriate?" The brunette asks knowingly.</p><p>"Lucy? Never." Kara jokes. "She asked if we wanted to go out tonight. Her and Nia want to have a girls night or something. Alex apparently has a date with some girl she met online so she’s out."</p><p>"Sounds fun. I'm in." Lena agrees, not caring if she sounds a little too eager.</p><p>"Awesome." Kara smiles cheekily. "I don't know a time, but I'm sure she will text us." She stands up and extends her hand to the green-eyed girl. "Now we should probably go home and get ready. I doubt you'll get into any club looking like that, Luthor." The brunette just rolls her eyes playfully as she takes Kara’s hand and allows the girl to pull her up.</p><p>Lena nudges the girl with her shoulder. "Let's go, sassy."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara shoves heavy loads of make up on her face in attempt to cover up the still visible bruising. Lena just dropped her back off at William’s about 2 hours ago and Lucy texted her saying she would be by in an hour.</p><p>"Why won't you go away." Kara mutters as she tries desperately to hide the bruising around her eyes. After coming to the realization that regular make up isn't going to cut it, she decides to bust out the tattoo concealer she bought a couple of days ago when she realized that it would probably be weeks before the bruising faded completely. Luckily, it does the trick and so Kara finishes putting on the rest of her make up and then slips on the long-sleeve dress she dug out of her closet. The royal blue sequin dress is cute and it covers the bruises lining her arms so it's  a win win.</p><p>As soon as she gets her heels on, she hears her phone ding and opens a text from Lucy saying that they are all waiting in the drive way. She quickly makes her way outside and smiles when she sees all her friends piled into Lucy’s car. Since Nia is occupying the front seat, she opts for sliding in on the left side.</p><p>"Kar!" Lucy shouts as soon as Kara enters. "I feel like I haven't seen you in ages!"</p><p>"Luce it was only like a week." Kara chuckles before turning to lock eyes with the green ones that haven't left her body since she entered the vehicle. "Hi, Lee."</p><p>A smile immediately tugs at Lena’s lips. “Hey. You look great." The green-eyed girl settles with great after deciding that fucking sexy isn't really appropriate.</p><p>“You don’t look so bad yourself, Luthor." Kara smiles before starting to sing along to the Beyoncé song that Lucy just turned on.</p><p>As soon as they walk up to the club, all eyes are on all four of the girls. Lucy grabs Nia’s hand, a subtle gesture that tells all the guys and girls to back off. Lena just walks alongside the girl in the blue dress, her hand brushing Kara’s every couple of steps.</p><p>"Lena, you wanna drink or drive tonight?" Lucy turns around to face the brunette as they wait in line to get their ID's checked.</p><p>"I'll drive." Lena shrugs nonchalantly. She used to get hammered during her college years, but that got old really fast. Plus, meeting Kara made her change all her ways. She found out really soon that the girl was a light weight and an in-denial drunk. When they'd go out, Kara would be wasted after two shots, but would claim she was sober enough to drive them home. Lena was always terrified if she got drunk and let her guard down that Kara would get hurt somehow and she would never forgive herself for that.</p><p>So tonight, just like she has many other times before, she cuts herself off after two glasses of whiskey neat. Plus, not getting drunk means she has more calories to waste on hamburgers and fries. She's realized that those taste better than alcohol anyway.</p><p>Lucy and Kara take two shots a piece before sprinting to the dance floor while Nia and Lena opt to stay at the booth and watch their stuff. Lena laughs as she watches Lucy and Kara dance their hearts out.  After the song they were dancing to ends, Lucy drags Kara back over to the bar for more shots.</p><p>"Four shots of tequila please." The blonde leans on the bar. The bartender nods and retreats to the other end of the bar to grab a bottle.</p><p>"Uh, Kar?" Lucy spins Kara around so she is facing the booth the other girls are occupying. Kara notices that a girl is currently attempting to sit on Lena’s lap. The redheaded stranger has her arm wrapped around Lena’s neck and is practically sitting on top of her. Kara watches Lena pry the arm away from her neck only to have the girl put it right back in the same spot.</p><p>"Four shots." Kara hears the bartender say and she blindly reaches beside her to grab a shot, her eyes still trained on the redhead and brunette across the bar. She downs the first shot and slams the glass down on the bar before reaching for the other and doing the same. After the liquid courage, she makes her way over to the booth and stands behind it. She hears the redhead whisper in Lena’s ear and Kara vaguely hears her say "I don't see your girl anywhere."</p><p>"Babe! Let's go dance!" Kara finally opens her mouth and Lena immediately scans the room for William, having heard Kara shout the pet name. When she doesn't see him, she allows her eyes to fall on Kara. When the brunette sees that her favorite blue eyes are trained on her, her heart goes ballistic.</p><p>"Who are you?" The redhead slurs.</p><p>"Her girl." Kara answers while jerking Lena away, which causes the stranger to fall off the booth and collide with the floor. Kara doesn't give the girl a second glance, but instead drags Lena to the dance floor. She hears Lucy yell "Get yo girl Kar!” and she rolls her eyes, a smirk gracing her features. When they finally reach the middle of the dance floor, the blue-eyed girl turns to a confused, yet slightly amused brunette. "You look like you needed some help back there." She slurs.</p><p>"I did. Thanks, darling." Lena offers the girl a flushed smile.</p><p>"No problem." The girl shrugs. "Since we are out here, we might as well dance."</p><p>Before Lena can answer, Kara turns around and places her backside into the brunette’s front. She grabs the pale hands behind her and wraps them around her own waist. As the music picks up, Kara grinds her body into Lena’s and the green-eyed girl is on the verge of passing out from excitement. After, getting over the initial shock of what is happening, she tightens her grip on Kara’s waist and pulls her impossibly closer to her.</p><p>Between the loud music and her heart beating loudly in her ears, she can't hear anything, but she can feel Kara moving sensually against her and that's all that matters. The blonde runs her hands up and down Lena’s forearms before interlacing her hands with the pale ones wrapped around her waist. Lena’s heart soars when she feels Kara slide her fingers between her own. They dance for a couple of more songs before Kara untangles herself from the brunette. Lena frowns momentarily from the loss of contact, but the smile returns to her features as soon as Kara wraps her arms around her neck. The blonde leans in and places her lips by Lena’s ear.</p><p>"I love this song." She whispers, her words slurred. The green-eyed girl immediately shivers when the hot breath hits her ear. Before Lena can reply, Kara leans back slightly and Lena’s breath hitches when she realizes how close their faces are. The brunette wants nothing more than to close the gap between them and take her wife's pink lips in her own, but the smell of tequila on Kara’s breath is strong. Lena wants to kiss her more than anything, but she can't do it when the girl is drunk.</p><p>As Lena is chastising herself for even considering kissing Kara when she's intoxicated, she feels soft lips press against hers. Lena’s body feels like it has just been set on fire and every fiber in her being wants to kiss back, but she knows she can't. Not like this.</p><p>So Lena doesn't move her lips, but instead places her hands on Kara’s shoulders and slowly  pushes her back. "Darling, I can't." She whispers as her eyes scan the dazed and confused blue eyes in front of her.</p><p>Embarrassment floods through Kara and she takes a step back from the girl she just drunkenly kissed. When she feels tears start to well up in her eyes, she quickly side steps Lena and makes her way off of the dance floor.</p><p>When Lena registers what's happening, she immediately spins around and grabs Kara’s arm to stop her. She effectively spins the girl around and when she sees the tears streaming down her cheeks, her heart breaks.</p><p>“Kara, hey don't cry, please." Lena immediately cups her cheeks and wipes away the tears that are racing down her cheeks. "I just can't-"</p><p>"I get it." Kara cuts her off as she removes the pale hands from her face and keeps walking away.</p><p>"Kara!" The green-eyed girl yells, but the blonde just continues walking.</p><p>Kara searches the crowd until she finds Lucy. "Luce, can I have the keys? I'm going to the car." Kara asks her best friend. Lucy, too wrapped up in her fiancé, hands her friend the keys. With the keys in tow, the drunk blonde stumbles out of the bar and heads for the car. </p><p>"Why did you have to do that Kara?" The blonde chastises herself as she opens up the car door and slides in. She is utterly humiliated and embarrassed and she just wants to go home. Not in her right mind, she quickly cranks up the car.</p><p>Lena searches the night club and finally finds Lucy lip-locking on the dance floor with Nia. "Lucy, have you seen Kara?" She taps the brunette on the shoulder.</p><p>“Yeah, I gave her the keys she wasn't feeling well or something." She admits and Lena’s eyes go wide.</p><p>"Lucy she was fucking drunk and upset! Why would you do that?" Lena runs her fingers through her hair before sprinting toward the exit. As soon as she gets outside, she searches for Lucy’s car and takes a deep breath when she sees that it’s right where they parked it. Lena makes her way over to the car and sees Kara sitting in the driver’s seat. She opens the door and grabs Kara’s hand. The girl protests, but Lena gently pulls her from the front of the car and guides her into the backseat. Once they are both in the back of the car, Lena pulls Kara into her lap and holds her as she cries. </p><p>"I need you to know that I only pulled away from the kiss tonight because you were drunk. I want to kiss you, Kara. More than anything. But not like that." She tightens her hold on her wife.</p><p>“Everything is messed up, Lee. I just wish I could remember you. I wish I could remember our life together.” Kara turns her body so she’s looking into Lena’s sympathetic green eyes.</p><p>“Me too, darling. But even if you never get your memories back, we can make new ones.” Lena leans in and presses her lips to Kara’s tear stained cheek. She only pulls away when she feels a tear hit her upper lip. “We have all the time in the world. I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Last song of the night, guys." Kara informs her crowd and boos erupt throughout the bar. The loudest boos are coming from the back, where Lucy and Lena are sitting. The musician just rolls her eyes at the two girls before focusing her attention back on the guitar sitting in her lap. "This is one of my favorite songs at the moment. I hope you like it."</p><p>I met a superhero<br/>I lost her<br/>I want her back<br/>She did things to me that no one else could<br/>And I miss that</p><p>Oh<br/>Don't wanna talk about it<br/>Oooh<br/>I was so wrong about it<br/>Oooh<br/>Can't do a thing about it now<br/>Now</p><p>Cause they say if you love her let her go<br/>And they say if it's meant to be you'll know<br/>Know</p><p>"She's looking over here." Lucy nudges the brunette beside her, a cheeky grin on her face.</p><p>"Oh look, you're here." Lena hears a voice behind her and turns around. She rolls her eyes when she sees William sitting down beside her.</p><p>"I could say the same thing." Lena mumbles and Lucy snorts. Not wanting to give the asshole any more of her time, she turns back around and enjoys the rest of Kara’s song. </p><p>I met a superhero<br/>I lost her<br/>I want her back<br/>She did things to me that no one else could<br/>I miss that</p><p>And they say if it's meant to be you'll know<br/>I met a superhero<br/>I lost her<br/>I want her back<br/>She did things to me that no one else could<br/>Damn, I miss that</p><p>Kara plays the last note on the guitar and the bar erupts with cheers. She smiles bashfully before setting her guitar down and walking to the back of the bar. </p><p>"Kar, that was amazing! I love that song!" Lucy gushes as Kara stands in front of her bar stool.</p><p>"You were amazing, as usual." Lena compliments and a blush rises to Kara’s cheeks. </p><p>She looks to William, but he just keeps scrolling through his phone. A frown makes it's way across her face as she feels her phone vibrating in her back pocket. </p><p>"Excuse me." Kara holds up her pointer finger and walks to the back of the bar. "Hello?" She answers the phone, one finger in her ear so she can block out the loud bar patrons.</p><p>"Is this Ms. Danvers?" She hears a woman ask.</p><p>"It is." She answers warily.</p><p>"This is the National City Police Department. We are going to have to ask you to come in today. We think we found your attacker." Kara’s blood runs cold and her mouth goes dry. "Ms. Danvers?"</p><p>"Yeah, I'll uh be right there." She ends the call, her hands shaking. When she returns to the front part of the bar, the two girls are deep in conversation about something while William is taking big gulps of his beer. Lucy’s smile turns into a worried frown as soon as her eyes land on an ashen Kara.</p><p>"Kar, you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost." Lucy slowly stands from her bar stool and Lena turns to face the girl.</p><p>“Yeah, I um just got a call from the National City Police Department. They want me to come in because they think they found my attacker." Kara runs her fingers through her hair.</p><p>"Shit." Lucy breathes out. "Do you think you'll be okay to do that?"</p><p>"I-I don't know, but I have to do it." Kara answers unsurely.</p><p>“Okay, well I can take you, just let me call Nic and tell her I’ll be late." Lucy reaches in her purse to retrieve her phone, but Lena puts her hand on Lucy’s to stop her.</p><p>"Or I can just take her, Lucy." Lena offers, but before any of the girls can speak up, William slams his beer bottle down and stands up abruptly.</p><p>"I'm taking her." He wipes his mouth with his sleeve and grabs Kara’s hand.</p><p>"I'll call you guys!" Kara yells as William continues to drag her to the exit of the bar.</p><p>Lena just huffs and grabs her keys from her purse. When she has them in hand, she stands up from her bar stool.</p><p>"You're going to the station too aren't you?" Lucy raises an eyebrow.</p><p>"Duh." Lena answers immediately.</p><p>"Make sure our girl's okay.” Lucy stares at Lena with worried eyes.<br/>The green-eyed girl nods, a small smile gracing her red lips. "Always."</p><p>Ten minutes later, Lena pulls up to the station and turns her car off. She doesn't trust William as far as she can throw him so she just wants to be here to make sure Kara is okay.</p><p>Meanwhile, Kara enters the precinct, her hands sweating furiously. William takes a seat while she walks up to the front desk. As soon as she tells the woman behind the counter who she is, another woman wearing jeans and a black leather jacket with a white button up underneath it approaches her.</p><p>"Ms. Danvers, I'm Detective Maggie Sawyer." She holds out her hand for Kara to shake. "We took some DNA off of you after your attack and yesterday a criminal we arrested for theft, matched that DNA." Kara’s heart beats loudly in her ears. "We want to put him away for what he did, but we need you to make sure that it is him."</p><p>Kara just nods, her mouth too dry to speak.</p><p>“You don’t happen to be related to an Alex Danvers do you?” The brunette inquires and Kara furrows her eyebrows.</p><p>“Yeah, she’s my sister.” The musician answers.”Why?”</p><p>“Oh no reason.” The detective scratches the back of her neck. “We uh just hung out the other night.” </p><p>“Oh so you were the mystery woman that she met online.” Kara smirks and Maggie just smiles bashfully, her dimples making an appearance. </p><p>“Yeah um so you can uh follow me." Detective Sawyer points to the door she just entered from and Kara calls William over to follow them. She leads them to a room in the back of the precinct. As soon as they enter, Maggie turns her attention to William. "I'm going to need you to stay out here." Kara’s eyes widen immediately and the detective takes notice of her change in demeanor. "He will be here when you're done." The detective assures the trembling girl. She looks at William for confirmation, but he doesn't tear his eyes away from his phone. Her shoulders slump and she hesitantly follows the detective into the room.</p><p>As soon as they enter, Detective Sawyer has her stand in front of the glass window. "They can't see you, but you can see them." She assures her before pressing a button and speaking into a microphone. "Bring him out!"</p><p>Kara stiffens immediately when a rough looking man walks into the room. She concludes that he must be about 6 feet tall and he is a fairly big man. The blonde looks him up and down, but she doesn't recognize him.</p><p>"I know you lost your memory, but does anything about this man seem familiar to you?" The detective turns to her, but Kara just shakes her head.</p><p>The detective presses the button and speaks into the microphone again. "Turn to your left please." The criminal obeys. It is then that Kara sees a spider web tattoo on the side of his neck. She gasps and immediately steps back from the glass until her back touches the opposite wall.</p><p>Before she can say anything, bits and pieces of her attack start flooding into her mind.</p><p>She remembers being pressed up against the wall. She remembers a knife being held to her throat. But most importantly, she remembers that the man holding the knife to her throat had a spiderweb tattoo on the side of his neck.</p><p>"That's him." She chokes out as tears start streaming down her face.</p><p>Meanwhile, in the parking lot, Lena’s head shoots up when she hears the precinct door sling open. She sees William walk out, his phone pressed to his ear, and Kara nowhere in sight. Lena watches as he slides into his car and then drives off. Lena quickly scrambles out of the car and runs into the building, all the while mumbling profanities under her breath that are directed toward William.</p><p>“I'm coming, Kara.” Lena thinks as she slings open the door to the station.</p><p>The detective turns around when she hears the small voice come from the back corner of the room. Her eyes land on the terrified blonde. “Ms. Danvers, are you sure?" She slowly walks closer to Kara just to make sure she heard her right. The blonde nods her head, her blue eyes wide with fear. “Do you need some water? Or would you like to sit down? You look a little pale.” The detective gently places a hand to the blonde’s back in case she starts to pass out. Kara just shakes her head, indicating that she doesn’t want either. “Okay, thank you for coming in today and we will call you soon to let you know the date of the trial." Maggie informs her and Kara nods before sprinting out of the door. She sees that her boyfriend is gone and the tears start to come faster when she realizes she's alone. Gasping for air, she busts out of the second door and starts to run down the hallway to the exit. Before she can get there, her body collides with another and she feels arms wrap her into a tight hug. She starts to panic, but then the person speaks up.</p><p>"You're okay. I got you."</p><p>“Lena.” She thinks before relaxing into the hug. She clings onto the back of Lena’s shirt and buries her head into the brunette's neck. Lena turns her head to the side and places a kiss to the crown of Kara’s head when she feels tears hit her neck.</p><p>"It was him." She whimpers and Lena pulls back slightly so she can look Kara in the eyes. "They brought him out and when he turned to the side, I noticed he had a spider web tattoo on his neck and then I had flashes of the attack." Kara rambles. "I-I remembered him, I remembered him holding a knife to my neck and-" She stops when bile starts rising up in her throat. She frantically untangles herself from the green-eyed girl despite her protests and looks around the hallway. When her eyes find the sign for the ladies bathroom, she darts into there, Lena trailing behind. The brunette quickly grabs Kara’s hair and holds it back while the latter empties all the contents in her stomach into the toilet in front of her. Lena rubs circles on her back as she waits for the girl to finish throwing up. When Kara is finished, Lena guides her to a chair in the corner of the bathroom and she wets a paper towel before placing it on the girl's forehead. She kneels down in front of her and her free hand find's Kara’s. She rubs her thumb back and forth across the soft skin beneath it and continues to hold the cold paper towel to the girl's head.</p><p>"You remembered something." Lena finally speaks up and Kara meets the green-eyed girl's hopeful gaze.</p><p>“Yeah, I guess I did." Kara chews on her bottom lip.</p><p>"That's great." Lena smiles before removing the paper towel from the girl's forehead and tossing it in the trash. "That means maybe you could remember-"</p><p>"Us." Kara finishes her thought and Lena nods her head. "He left. Didn't he?"</p><p>The green-eyed girl nods her head again and Kara looks down at her lap momentarily.</p><p>"Well thank you for being here." She mumbles before slowly raising her head and offering Lena a small, grateful smile.</p><p>"Always." Lena promises and Kara leans in and presses her lips to one of the ivory cheeks in front of her. She feels the skin heat up under her lips and she pulls back with a bigger smile on her face.</p><p>"Let's go home, Lee." Kara stands up and leads them both out of the door and into the parking lot.</p><p>“I'm with you. So I'm already home.” Lena thinks as she pulls out of the parking lot and drives to her apartment.</p><p>Her second home.</p><p>With her first home sitting in the seat right beside her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lena sets aside the art portfolios she's currently grading and picks up her phone that just dinged.</p><p>[4:31 pm] Lucy: Sleepover at our apartment tonight. You in?</p><p>[4:32 pm] Lena: I have a lot of art portfolios to grade. </p><p>[4:34 pm] Lucy: It wasn't a question. Your girl has been extra on edge lately after seeing her attacker. She needs this.</p><p>[4:35 pm] Lena: Of course I'll be there then...</p><p>[4:36 pm] Lucy: Knew if I played the Kara card your pale ass would come running.</p><p>[4:37 pm] Lena: What can I say? I'm whipped. I came to terms with this a long time ago.</p><p>[4:38 pm] Lucy: Ugh my ship is the cutest I swear. See ya at 5:30.</p><p>Lena shakes her head at the fiery brunette before finishing up the art portfolio she's grading. After setting it aside, she gets up and throws on a pair of sweats and her favorite National City University sweatshirt. She combs her fingers through her disheveled hair before applying a little bit of powder to her face and a light shade of lipstick. When she enters back into the living room area, she smiles at the not so little puppy sitting by her front door.</p><p>"Maybe Lucy won't be mad if I bring a plus one." Lena smiles when Kieran cocks his head to the side. After grabbing her phone and keys, she escorts them both to the apartment across from hers and knocks on the door.</p><p>Lucy opens it and raises an eyebrow at her when she sees the puppy sitting between the girl's legs. "Did I say you could bring a plus one, Luthor?"</p><p>“Oh, c'mon. You said it yourself, Kara needs cheering up and I know for a fact that this little guy will do the trick." Lena scratches the top of the dog's head and Lucy huffs before stepping aside. Lena smiles triumphantly as she enters the apartment. "Hey guys." She greets Nia and Alex, who are fiddling with the DVD player.</p><p>“Hey, Lena." They both say in unison before returning their attention to the DVD player.</p><p>"Where is Kara?" The brunette's brows furrow when she doesn't see her wife anywhere.</p><p>"Her room." Lucy points to the back. "Tell her we are about to start the movie so she needs to get her ass in here." Lena nods and leads Kieran down the hallway.</p><p>"Kara." Lena knocks once. She smiles when she hears a muffled 'come in.' She opens the door and the puppy runs in first. Her smile widens when Kara squeals.</p><p>"Hi, baby!" The blonde jumps up from the bed when she sees her favorite animal saunter into her room. "Whatcha been doing, bud?" Kara cooes as she scratches behind his ears.</p><p>"Chewing up his dog bed and peeing all over everything." Lena chuckles as she enters Kara's room.</p><p>"Hi, Lee." Kara smiles up at the brunette momentarily before returning her attention back to the puppy. "You been giving your mom a hard time?" She asks and Kieran just licks her face in response.</p><p>“So, Lucy told me to tell you that the movie is starting." Lena bends down to join Kara in petting the puppy.</p><p>As if on cue, Lucy yells from the living room. "Ladies! We are going to start the movie without you if you don't get your asses in here!"</p><p>Kara chuckles before standing up straight. "You heard the woman." She playfully rolls her eyes and leads them all out of the room. When they enter the living room, all three of the girls are curled up on the big couch, which leaves Lena and Kara to sit on the smaller one.</p><p>"What are we watching?" Kara sits down on the sofa, tucking her feet underneath her. Lena sits beside her and Kieran opts to lay down by the front of the couch.</p><p>"The Notebook." Nia rolls her eyes.</p><p>"Nia! don't you dare disrespect my movie like that." Lucy slaps her fiancé's arm.</p><p>"We just watch it all the time." Alex huffs as she takes a bite of her popcorn.</p><p>“Well I’m sure if Maggie was here she wouldn’t be complaining about watching it." Kara smirks and Alex nearly chokes on her popcorn. </p><p>During almost the entirety of the movie, the green-eyed girl finds herself watching Kara instead of focusing on Ryan and Rachel. She does turn her attention to the screen when she hears music playing. Her heart warms when she sees the older versions of Allie and Noah slow dancing in the nursing home. The warmness is soon replaced with sadness when Allie forgets who he is again and starts to panic. The older brunette doesn't even realize she is crying until she feels her tears plummet from her chin to her shirt. Lena quickly wipes at her wet cheeks and gets up to go to the bathroom.</p><p>Kara, too engrossed in the movie, doesn't notice that she has left until Lucy gets her attention.</p><p>"Kar." Lucy whispers and Kara pries her eyes away from the movie. It's then that she notices Lena isn't there anymore.</p><p>"Where's Lee?" She furrows her eyebrows as she scans the room.</p><p>"She got up about ten minutes ago and went to the bathroom, but she hasn't come back." Lucy points to the back of the apartment and Kara immediately gets up and walks back there. She sees the bathroom door is cracked and so she slowly peeks her head in. Lena is sitting on the floor watching a video on her phone, tears streaming down her pale cheeks.</p><p>"Lee?" Kara slowly pushes the door open and approaches the girl. She takes a seat by her on the floor and frowns when she watches Lena hastily wipe her tears away. "You okay?"</p><p>Lena nods. "Sorry for leaving. That scene with Allie forgetting Noah got to me."</p><p>"Yeah that's a sad... oh." The blonde’s eyes widen when she realizes why that particular scene would make Lena sad.</p><p>"I'm sorry I'm such a mess." The green-eyed girl apologizes and Kara shakes her head immediately.</p><p>“No, don't do that. Don't apologize for how you feel." Kara whispers as she takes Lena’s hand in her own and intertwines their fingers. "You're always comforting me and taking care of me and sometimes I forget that you were affected by my accident almost as much as I was." Kara gives the hand in hers a light squeeze before turning her attention to the phone in Lena’s hands. "What were you watching?"</p><p>"Just an old video." Lena looks down at her phone screen.</p><p>"Can I uh see it?" Kara asks hesitantly and Lena nods. She restarts the video and Kara scoots closer to her, their hands still intertwined. The blonde’s eyes light up when she sees herself on the screen. "When was this?" She asks.</p><p>"The first night of our honeymoon." Lena smiles and plays the video.</p><p>Lena: Kara put the camera away so I can kiss you.</p><p>Kara: Lee, it's our honeymoon. I want to document our first night in Paris.</p><p>Lena: Exactly, it's the first night of our honeymoon so we should be doing this.</p><p>Kara smiles when she watches Lena lean in and place open mouth kisses on her neck.</p><p>Kara: Mmmm well I've changed my mind. Instead of videoing us exploring Paris, why don't we go back to the hotel and I can video me exploring you?</p><p>Kara’s cheeks redden as she watches her past self lean in and capture Lena’s lips in hers. The video cuts off seconds later.</p><p>"Well that escalated quickly." Kara chuckles. "For a second there I thought you were showing me a sex tape, Luthor."</p><p>Lena laughs and looks at Kara. "You would like that wouldn't you?" She nudges the girl's shoulder playfully.</p><p>"You caught me." Kara sends the green-eyed girl a quick wink and chuckles when Lena only yawns in return. "Wow is my company that boring?" She smirks and slowly stands up.</p><p>Lena immediately shakes her head. "No, never, just a long night grading art portfolios." She replies before standing up next to Kara.</p><p>"Well lets go and get some sleep, yeah?" Kara suggests and when Lena nods, she leads them both into the living room. They walk in to see that the three girls have blown up two queen size air mattresses and one twin size.</p><p>"Ladies, we built you a bed. You're welcome." Lucy plops down on the air mattress that her fiancé is already occupying.</p><p>"Luce, I have a bed." Kara raises an eyebrow.</p><p>"Well I do too, but this is a sleepover." Lucy reminds her.</p><p>"Okay, okay." Kara relents and lays down on the mattress. Lena turns the lamp off before following suit. She smiles when she sees Kieran sneak onto the air mattress and lay down at their feet.</p><p>"Night, guys." Kara yawns and all the girls bid her a goodnight before they all fall into a deep slumber.</p><p>The next morning, Kara wakes up when she hears someone snapping pictures and letting out of string of "awws." She flutters her eyes open and they immediately widen when she sees what position she is in. Currently, her face is tucked into Lena’s neck and her arm is slung over the girl's waist. She looks down to see that their legs are intertwined and she blushes. Carefully, she untangles her legs from the green-eyed girl's and slowly removes the girl's arm from around her. She takes a moment to pet the loyal dog at the foot of the mattress before walking into the kitchen quietly so she doesn't wake the other three girls.</p><p>"That was a cute position you two were in." Lucy smirks as she stirs her coffee. Kara immediately covers her face and grabs Lucy’s keys from the bar.</p><p>"I'm going to uh get breakfast." Kara points to the door and Lucy just raises an eyebrow.</p><p>"Running from our problems are we? Or should I say running from our feelings." Lucy takes a sip of her coffee and Kara just rolls her eyes. "The heart wants what it wants, Kar." Kara doesn't respond, she just walks to the door and exits the apartment.</p><p>The sound of the door shutting wakes Lena and she slowly flutters her eyes open and stretches. A frown makes its way across her features when she realizes the bed is empty. She stands up and walks to the kitchen in search of her wife.</p><p>"Sleep good?" Lucy smirks at the girl.</p><p>"Like a baby." Lena suppresses a yawn.</p><p>"Mmhmm I'm sure you did." The brunette smirks.</p><p>"Where's Kara?" Lena looks around the kitchen as she fixes herself a cup of coffee.</p><p>"Went out to get breakfast. All that cuddling must have made her quite hungry."<br/>Lucy takes a sip of her coffee to hide her smirk while Lena chokes on the sip she just took.</p><p>"What?" The brunette sets the mug down and Lucy fumbles with her phone before extending it to Lena. The brunette takes the phone into her hands and smiles at the image on the screen of her cuddling with her favorite girl.</p><p>"Cute, huh? You're welcome for capturing an iconic moment." Lucy dramatically tosses her hair back and Lena just shakes her head, a small smile playing at her lips. She sends herself the photo before giving the phone back to it's owner. "For Christmas, I'll blow that picture up for you and you can hang it on your wall."</p><p>"An 8x10 will suffice." Lena laughs before picking up her coffee and taking another sip. She pulls out her own phone from her pocket and sets the picture as her background.</p><p>"It means something, you know." Lucy speaks up after a couple of moments of silence. "Her head may not remember you, but her heart sure does."</p><p>The art instructor just nods. "You know she remembered some of the attack." Lena nurses her coffee.</p><p>"Yeah she told me." Lucy answers. "That's amazing, Lena. It means-"</p><p>"She could remember us." The brunette finishes her thought. "I'm just trying to not get my hopes up."</p><p>"Yeah, I understand." Lucy offers a sad smile. “You two will be endgame though. Mark my words."</p><p>"Maybe so.” Lena smiles as she looks at her new background. "In the meantime, can we have more sleepovers?"</p><p>"Duh." Lucy scoffs, faking annoyance. "I'll be the official sleepover photographer for the two of you."</p><p>"You do take good pictures." Lena takes another sip of her hot drink.</p><p>"Damn right I do." The brunette agrees and Lena shakes her head at the cocky girl.</p><p>"Okay well on that note, I'm going to head back to my place and finish up some grading." Lena rinses her cup out and sets it in the sink. "See ya later."</p><p>"Bye, Lena." Lucy waves as Lena exits the kitchen. Before Lena leaves the apartment, she walks to Kara’s room and looks for her stationary. When she finds it on her desk, she writes a note.</p><p>I had a great time with you last night, Kara. Have a wonderful day! You deserve to.</p><p>- Lena</p><p>She lays the note on her floral bedspread and walks out of the apartment, Kieran on her heels. As soon as she gets in, she sits down and grades the rest of her portfolios. This time, she does it with a smile on her face and anytime she finds it fading or finds herself getting frustrated, she just presses her home button and the picture of her and Kara cuddling graces her screen.</p><p>And like clockwork, her smile returns immediately.</p>
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<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Chapter 15</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Kara won't be dealing with William's bullsh*t any more after this chapter, but something has to be the final straw for her... thanks for reading and leaving kudos and for all the nice comments. This story is just getting started... so buckle up.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Hey Kar, I'm headed to Nia’s to spend the night. You okay here by yourself?" Lucy asks as she slings her overnight bag over her shoulder.</p><p>"Yeah, of course. I think William is coming over for a late dinner tonight when he gets off work so I won't be alone." Kara assures her roommate, but little does she know that that information doesn't make Lucy feel better at all. The brunette grimaces when she hears William’s name slip from Kara’s lips. She wants nothing more than to just shake the girl in front of her, but she knows that will not do any good. Kara has to want to leave William. It has to be her idea and Lucy has come to terms with that.</p><p>"Be careful." Lucy quickly embraces her best friend.</p><p>"Luce, I'm just going to be at the apartment with William." Kara tries to play it down.</p><p>"That's why I'm worried." Lucy mumbles as she lets go of the girl and walks to the door. "You know you can call me if you need anything right?"</p><p>"Of course." The blonde nods her head.</p><p>"Good. See ya, Kar." Lucy offers her a quick wave before exiting the apartment and heading to her fiancé's place.</p><p>Kara gets started cooking dinner as soon as the brunette leaves and luckily she gets started early because it ends up taking her about 3 hours to prepare William’s favorite dish. Once she takes the homemade lasagna and garlic bread out of the oven, she hears a knock at the door. When she opens it, she sees her boyfriend standing on the other side of the door wearing an annoyed expression.</p><p>"Hey!" She greets cheerfully. The boy just offers her a half smile and pushes into the apartment.</p><p>"I'm going to shower! I want beer to drink, not wine." He calls out before slamming the bathroom door, which causes the blonde to flinch. She immediately pours his glass of wine back into the bottle and grabs a beer from the fridge.</p><p>Dinner goes the same as it always does, Kara talks while William just plays on his phone. When both of their plates are empty, she scoops them up and takes them both to the sink. While washing the dishes, she hears her phone ding, but she doesn't think much about it.</p><p>William, on the other hand, reaches out and grabs it off of the table. He quickly unlocks the phone and opens the text.</p><p>[10:00 pm] Lucy: Thought you might want this picture. I took it yesterday morning.</p><p>William immediately clicks on the picture attached and drops the phone to the table when he sees a picture of his girlfriend snuggled up to Lena. When Kara hears the abrupt screeching of the chair on the floor, she immediately drops the dish in the sink and turns around. Her heart sinks to her stomach when she sees that William’s fists and jaw are clenched.</p><p>Meanwhile, Lena is sleeping soundly in her bed. Teaching today wore her out. Monday's are always the most tiring days for her so she always gets in the bed by at least 9 pm. Tonight, she stirs awake at around 10 pm when she feels her arm being nudged. She groans and turns on her bedside lamp. She sees Kieran sitting by her bed crying and so she just turns off the lamp and pats her bed telling him to jump up on it if he wants to sleep with her. The green-eyed girl turns over to lay back down, but the puppy just starts barking loudly.</p><p>Groaning, Lena sits up in the bed and turns on the lamp once again. "What is it, boy?" She asks and Kieran just continues to cry as he looks at Lena and then looks at her bedroom door. "Show me what it is." She says a little more cautiously when she fully wakes up and realizes that this is not normal behavior for her dog. The brunette slowly gets out of bed and the puppy leads her into the living room.</p><p>Kara puts both of her hands out in front of her as she slowly approaches her boyfriend who is pacing outside of her apartment. "William..." She tries, but is cut off by William backing her into the wall and lodging his arm into her throat.</p><p>"You don't get to speak." He seethes as he presses his forearm down harder into her throat.</p><p>As she looks into dark, angry eyes, her mind immediately goes back to the day she was attacked outside the hotel in National City.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"I can't have you remembering who I am." Her attacker says as he grits his teeth. He presses the knife deeper into her throat and she cries out when she feels the knife break skin. "So I'm going to make sure you forget." He immediately drops the knife and in one quick motion he shoves Kara’s head into the brick wall that is situated behind her. As soon as her skull collides with the wall, she sees stars and the impact sends her to the ground. Once her face hits the cold concrete, she prays that the man will walk away. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen. Instead, Kara feels something else collide with her head and she groans as the world starts spinning. "Sweet dreams." She hears the man whisper before she feels another blow to her head. This blow causes her whole world to go black.</p><p>________________<br/>End of flashback<br/>________________</p><p>Kara frantically claws at William’s face when she starts to see stars and she manages to let out a strangled cry when she cannot seem to break free.</p><p>Lena stands at her bedroom door and watches as Kieran claws at the front door. Not seconds later, she hears a yelp. One that sounds familiar. She immediately rushes to the door and grabs the puppy so she can shut him in her bedroom. She goes to put on some shoes while she is in there, but then she hears Kara cry out again and she ditches shoes altogether. What she sees when she opens the door to her apartment makes her blood boil. William has Kara pinned up against the wall, his forearm pressed into her throat.</p><p>"I told you not to see that bitch again." William spits as he applies more pressure to her throat.</p><p>Kara tries to pry his hands off her neck, but she is unsuccessful. Lena immediately steps into action and drags the boy off of her wife. She throws him into the apartment wall across from Kara and then steps in front of the blonde as a shield.</p><p>"Don't you ever lay your filthy hands on her again." Lena spits as she reaches behind her and grabs one of Kara’s trembling hands in hers.</p><p>"She's my girlfriend, I can do what I want to her." William lunges at the green-eyed girl, but she just shoves him forcefully again.</p><p>"You sick bastard." Lena takes a couple of steps forward and backs William into the opposite wall, immediately lodging her arm into the boy's throat. "I will kill you with my bare hands if you ever lay another one of yours on her." The brunette presses her forearm further into the boy's throat. She starts to speak up again, but then she hears the girl behind her start gasping for air. The green-eyed girl immediately drops her arm and quickly makes her way over to her wife. Before she can bend down, she feels someone jerk her back by her hair.</p><p>"You don't get to take care of her that's my job!" William positions himself between the two girls.</p><p>Lena’s heart clenches when she sees Kara wrap her arms around herself and sink to the ground so she can curl up into a ball. She can hear Kara’s ragged breathing from where she's standing and the sound makes her eyes burn with rage. She immediately places both hands on William’s shoulders and brings her right knee up to connect with his crotch. When he doubles over in pain, she brings her knee up again and drives it into his nose. The green-eyed girl smirks momentarily as she watches him double over in pain, but when she hears Kara’s strained breathing, she immediately scoops the panicked girl into her arms and carries her into her apartment. Kara clings on tightly to Lena as the brunette carries her over the threshold and locks the door behind them. Lena sits down on the couch with Kara still in her arms. Kara tucks her head into Lena’s neck and her hands clutch tightly at the front of the girl's sweatshirt.</p><p>"Just breathe. I've got you." Lena cooes as she places a quick kiss on Kara’s head and tightens her grip on the girl. Kara starts shaking harder when William starts banging on the apartment door. The green-eyed girl quickly takes the girl in her arms into her bedroom and shuts the door behind her. She quickly sets her down on the bed before turning on her bluetooth speaker. She quickly clicks on the first song in her library and turns the volume up as loud as it will go so it'll drown out William’s tantrum. Lena squats down in front of the blue-eyed girl and her heart clenches at the sight. Kara has both hands clasped over her ears and she's looking at the ground. She is still struggling to breathe and it worries Lena so she gently takes Kara’s hands off her ears and holds them in her own. She runs her thumbs soothingly across the back of the soft hands momentarily before letting go of one of them so she can use her free hand to hook a finger under Kara’s chin.</p><p>"You're safe, darling." Lena places both of her hands on her wife’s damp cheeks and wipes the tears off of them. "Copy my breathing, baby." Lena coaxes as she takes a deep breath and watches Kara do the same. When she sees the fear and vulnerability in the blue eyes that are staring into her own, she quickly stands up and sits next to the girl. Lena immediately pulls her wife into her arms and rests her chin on top of Kara’s head. She smiles when she sees Kieran place his head in Kara’s lap. The blonde pets the dog with one hand, her other still balled up in a fist in her lap. Neither girl knows how long they stay in that position, but neither attempts to pull away. After what feels like hours, Lena finally pulls back and looks into her favorite pair of blue eyes.</p><p>"Are you okay now?" Her hand finds Kara’s and she gives it a light squeeze. “How badly did he hurt you? Do you need a doctor? I should call the police.” She rambles as she allows her eyes to scan over the girl's body to look for any bruising or blood. She does notice that there are already bruises forming on the blonde’s throat and Lena’s vision turns red.</p><p>Kara clears her throat. "I'm okay now." She promises Lena. The green-eyed girl is quick to notice the hoarseness in Kara’s voice and she has to stop herself from leaving right now and hunting William down. "I'm just tired.” Lena makes a mental note to remember to take pictures of Kara tomorrow so she can get them to Alex. The eldest Danvers sister is dating a detective these days and so maybe she will be able to help Kara. Lena vows to not let William get away with this. </p><p>The green-eyed girl just nods and quickly stands up. "You can take the bed and I'll take the couch." She gestures toward the living room.</p><p>Kara goes to protest, but Lena cuts her off. "I'm not taking no for an answer. You need sleep." She smiles warmly at the girl. "Goodnight, darling." Lena goes to open the door, but Kara’s voice makes her stop.</p><p>"Stay." The hoarse voice chokes out.</p><p>Lena pauses at the door, her back still turned to the girl.</p><p>"Please." Kara whispers and Lena turns the light off in the room. She slowly makes her way back over to the bed and lays down beside her wife. She feels the girl back into her and Lena immediately shifts on her side and wraps a protective arm around the girl's waist. They both feel the bed dip down, signaling that Kieran has joined them.</p><p>“Night, Lee. Thank you for saving me." Kara whispers and Lena gives her body a tight squeeze. </p><p>“Always.” Lena whispers in the dark. She hears the girl’s breathing even out minutes later and Lena places a quick kiss to the back of her neck.</p><p>“Night, beautiful.” She whispers before drifting off into a deep sleep.</p>
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<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Chapter 16</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara wakes up the next morning and glances at the clock sitting on Lena’s dresser.</p><p>5:00 a.m.</p><p>She tries to get up, but realizes Lena’s arm is still wrapped tightly around her waist. She carefully removes the pale arm and lays it back down on the bed. After crawling out of the bed slowly, so she doesn't wake the green-eyed girl or the snoring dog at the foot of the bed, she steals a quick glance at the sleeping brunette. A smile tugs at her lips when she sees Lena’s dark hair sprawled all over her pillow and face. The blonde can't help herself from walking over to Lena’s side of the bed and brushing some hair from her face. Before she realizes what she's doing, her lips press to the sleeping girl's forehead. After a beat, she pulls away and walks over to Lena’s desk that is situated in the corner of her bedroom. She digs out a pen and paper from one of the drawers and scribbles out a note. Satisfied with her words, Kara lays the piece of paper by Lena’s phone on the nightstand.</p><p>"Bye, Lee." She whispers before exiting the room. She shudders when she steps out of the apartment and her eyes land on the wall directly across from her. The one William had her pinned to just last night.</p><p>Lena wakes up about an hour later and sighs when she sees her that her arm is touching the bed spread and not a certain blue-eyed girl. She sits up from the bed and stretches. While doing so, she notices the note by her phone. She quickly scoops it up and her eyes scan over the familiar handwriting.</p><p>I woke up at 5 and I figured I would just head back to my place to start the day. You looked too peaceful to wake, and I figured leaving notes is sort of our thing anyways so I opted for pen and paper as a way to bid you a good morning. I hope you have a wonderful day at work, Lee. Thank you again for taking care of me last night. You're always saving me. I kinda feel like I have my own personal Supergirl.</p><p>I'll be seeing ya,</p><p>Kara</p><p>Lena smiles as she sets the note back on the bedside table. After taking a shower, feeding Kieran, and eating breakfast, she heads to her job.</p><p>Kara, however, spends her quiet morning writing music. When her phone rings, she sets her notebook to the side and places it to her ear. "Hello?"</p><p>"Ms. Danvers, it's Eric from Atlantic Records. We had previously contacted you about coming to New York and pitching your music to the label. We were calling to see if this coming weekend would be a good time for you?"</p><p>"Uh-yeah this weekend would be great." She agrees eagerly.</p><p>"We know you are coming a long way so feel free to bring some friends out with you. Just shoot us an email with who you want to bring and we will get it all set up for you."</p><p>"Wow okay thank you!" The musician smiles into the phone. "I'll talk it over with my friends and get back to you at the end of the day."</p><p>"Sounds good, Ms. Danvers. We look forward to seeing you this weekend. Safe travels."</p><p>"Thank you, Eric. See you this weekend." She says before hanging up. Nia and Lucy are the first call she makes since they are together. Instead of getting an answer, she just gets screaming so she takes that as a yes. Alex is next, and she immediately agrees because apparently she is looking into scheduling a meeting with some big wheel who wants to make her restaurant a chain. Kara’s finger hovers over Lena’s contact, but instead of pressing the call button, she just locks her phone. As a thank you for last night, she decides to get ready and bring Lena lunch at her work. There she will ask her about New York.</p><p>Putting on makeup deems difficult for the blonde when she realizes that normal makeup won't cover the bruises lining her neck. Instead of busting out the tattoo makeup, she just shrugs and leaves them exposed. It's not like she needs to hide them anyway, the green-eyed girl practically watched them form on her neck last night.</p><p>After calling an Uber and bribing it to stop by Lena’s favorite burger joint first, she makes it to the girl's workplace by noon. As soon as she enters the double doors, she is greeted by Lena’s very forward male colleague.</p><p>"Well well well, I hope that you are bringing me lunch this time, beautiful." Jack walks over to the girl.</p><p>“Hey, again." Kara smiles shyly before holding up the paper bag. "And unfortunately this burger is already claimed."</p><p>"Are you? Claimed, I mean." Jack slowly rakes his eyes over Kara.</p><p>"Yeah-h." The blonde stutters.</p><p>"Looks like the lucky guy or girl likes it a bit rough." The man raises her eyebrows as he studies the bruises on the blue-eyed girl’s neck.</p><p>Kara clears her throat. "I better- the burger is getting cold so..." She points down the hallway.</p><p>"See you around, gorgeous." Jack winks before stepping aside and watching Kara walk down the hallway.</p><p>The blonde comes to a stop by the door that reads Mrs. Luthor-Danvers. A smile creeps up on her lips as she knocks on the door.</p><p>"Come in!" She hears a raspy voice yell and she opens the door. Instead of finding just the green-eyed girl, she sees that there are a few students in the room as well. All of them turn their attention from their easels to the door as soon as Kara steps in.</p><p>“Shoot, I thought she had a break after her second class.” Kara thinks as she stands frozen at the door.</p><p>"I'll be right with..." Lena stops mid-sentence when her eyes land on her favorite blonde. "Kara." She breathes out, a smile gracing her porcelain features.</p><p>"I'm so sorry to interrupt I thought you were on break right now." Kara smiles sheepishly and Lena just makes her way across the room to the girl. She leads them out into the hallway so they can have some privacy.</p><p>"No, don't be sorry. I'm glad you're here." Lena smiles. "They asked me to take up another class in the morning so unfortunately my lunch break is cut short."</p><p>"Well hopefully your burger won't get cold." Kara frowns as she holds the brown sack up.</p><p>"Well one perk of being a teacher is I get to do this." She sticks her head back in the door. "Alright guys, I know we still have about 15 more minutes left of class, but since you've all worked so hard for the past hour, I'm letting you go early today." The class erupts in cheers and Lena ushers the blonde back into the room and over to her desk. "Give me a second." Lena pulls out her desk chair for Kara to sit in before making her way to the door and seeing her students out.</p><p>Blue eyes scan the teacher's desk and they only stop when they land on a frame sitting on the right side of the desk. It's of her and the green-eyed girl. They are feeding each other cake and the all white ensemble they are sporting tells Kara that this picture is from their wedding day. She reaches across the desk and takes the frame in her hands. She runs her fingertips over the picture and smiles fondly at a memory that she doesn't remember, but wishes she did.</p><p>"If you were about to ask me to re-create that picture with you with the cheeseburger you brought me, the answer is yes." Lena smirks as she pulls up a chair next to the desk.</p><p>"You read my mind." Kara chuckles as she sets the picture back down in it's original spot.</p><p>"Seriously, thank you for the lunch, darling. I'm starving." Lena’s mouth waters as she digs the burger out of the bag.</p><p>"Just a thank you for last night." Kara smiles and Lena, remembering the events of last night, scans the blonde’s body for present bruises. She grimaces when she sees the bruising around her neck area. Before she can stop herself, she reaches out and tilts Kara’s chin up so she can study the bruises better. She traces her fingertips across them with the same tenderness that Kara just used on the picture a second ago.</p><p>"They don't hurt." The musician assures the teacher.</p><p>"You sure?" Lena asks, her eyebrows knitting in concern.</p><p>"If I say yes, are you going to scoop me up in your arms and fly me to the nearest hospital?" Kara cocks an eyebrow in amusement.</p><p>Lena chuckles when she realizes Kara is referencing the note that she left this morning when she referred to Lena as her Supergirl.</p><p>"Maybe." Lena winks as she removes the foil from around her burger and takes a bite.</p><p>"So I ran into your male colleague on my way in." Kara states while leaning back into the chair. "He asked me if I was claimed."</p><p>Lena rolls her eyes, making a mental note to tell the man to back the fuck off. "That man has no filter and no shame."</p><p>"Agreed." Kara plays with the hem of her shirt momentarily before she remembers the reason she's here. "Oh! I forgot to tell you, I got a call from Atlantic Records this morning. They want me to come to New York this weekend."</p><p>"Kara, that's great!" Lena sets her burger down and takes a sip of her drink.</p><p>"Yeah and that's not even the best part. They told me to invite some friends along so how would you like to accompany me to New York?" The blonde smiles fondly at the girl across from her who currently looks like a chipmunk because she took too big of a bite of her burger. Lena holds up her pointer finger and Kara just chuckles as she waits patiently for Lena to swallow her food.</p><p>"Wait, really? I haven't been there in forever!" Her green eyes light up.</p><p>"Yep, all expenses paid too. Well besides food and Ubers." Kara informs her and Lena nods in understanding.</p><p>"I'd love to accompany you to New York, m'lady." Lena brings her fake British accent back.</p><p>Kara doubles over in laughter. “Not the accent again." The blonde snorts and Lena puts her hand over her chest, feigning hurt. "Stick to art, you're better at art than imitating British people."</p><p>"How do you know that?" Lena counters. "Have you ever actually seen any of my art?" She cocks an eyebrow.</p><p>"No, but I'd like to." Kara stands up and starts walking around the room. Her eyes scan the paintings hung on the walls. "These yours?"</p><p>Lena nods and stands up to accompany Kara in looking at the art. The musician notices that most of the paintings are of landscapes.</p><p>"Do you ever paint people?" Kara turns to face the green-eyed girl.</p><p>Lena just shrugs. "I mean I can, but I have a hard time getting people to sit still long enough to paint them accurately."</p><p>"Paint me." The blonde pipes up. "I'll sit still long enough, I promise." She offers and Lena smiles as she remembers one of her favorite moments with Kara.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"Lena, you promised." Kara huffs as she crosses her arms over her chest.</p><p>"Kara, I really don't think you can sit still long enough for me to paint you." Lena sticks her tongue out at the girl.</p><p>"Fine. I guess I'll just sit in the art studio until you come and paint me then." Kara shrugs as she walks into the art building on campus, Lena trailing behind.</p><p>“Kara, it's like 9 o'clock at night. We can't go in there right now.” Lena scolds her girlfriend. The green-eyed girl came to campus tonight to pick Kara up from her night class and the two decided to take a leisurely stroll of the campus.</p><p>"It's unlocked so I don't see anything wrong with it." Kara shrugs again while backpedaling into the building. Lena huffs and follows the girl into the art building, where she spends most of her time. When they enter a random art classroom, Kara locks the door and pulls a chair up to the middle of the room.</p><p>"You aren't going to let this go are you?" Lena raises an eyebrow.</p><p>"Nope." Kara smirks as she plops down on the chair.</p><p>"Fine. Give me a second to get all my paints ready." The green-eyed girl runs a hand through her wavy hair and makes her way to the back of the room to gather some supplies. After she has all her paints poured, she turns around and her jaw drops.</p><p>Kara is sitting on the chair... wearing nothing but her lacy underwear and bra. Her knees are pulled to her chest, her arms slung loosely around her knees. Lena swears her heart stops beating all together. This is the first time she's seen her girlfriend without clothes. They've only been dating for a month and Kara has always insisted on taking things slow.</p><p>"Thought I'd make it more interesting for you." The blonde drops her knees to the ground and crosses her legs, revealing her chest and toned abdomen to Lena. The blue-eyed girl smirks when she realizes Lena’s eyes have not left her own. "You can look, babe." Kara coxes and Lena just nods her head. She drops her gaze and scans Kara’s perfectly sculpted body, starting from her legs. Her eyes travel from her girlfriend's toned legs to her slim tummy and then to her breasts. The site makes Lena subconsciously lick her lips.</p><p>"You're so fucking beautiful, Kara." Green eyes find blue ones once again.</p><p>"I'm nothing special, Lee." Kara ducks her head and the green-eyed girl immediately sets her paint palette down and walks over to her girlfriend. She bends down and hooks her finger under Kara’s chin and lifts it up so they can lock eyes.</p><p>"You're easily the most beautiful girl I've ever laid eyes on." Lena scans the blue eyes in front of her for the playfulness that she saw earlier, but all she finds is insecurity and it makes her heart ache. Lena dips her head down and cuts her off with a tender kiss. The artist places her free hand on her girlfriend's soft cheek and rubs it with her thumb while her tongue darts into Kara’s mouth. The latter releases a moan when their tongues brush and she slowly stands up from the chair. Kara spins them around and pushes Lena down onto the chair before straddling her.</p><p>Lena swears she's died and gone to heaven. She doesn't think it could get any better than this, but then Kara grabs her hands and places them on her breasts. The girl's touch sets Kara’s body on fire and she leans in and captures her girlfriend's lips in her own. </p><p>As soon as Kara gets the courage to lightly bite Lena’s lip, the green-eyed girl pulls back frantically. "Shit, Kara."</p><p>Kara tenses when she takes in her girlfriend's horrified expression. “Oh, shoot did I bite down too hard I'm so-"</p><p>"No, baby, that was perfect and so sexy, but..." Lena points to the door where a flashlight is currently lighting up the hall outside the room.</p><p>"Crap." Kara hastily gets off Lena and they both frantically grab at Kara’s strewn clothing. Once they grab them all, Lena reaches for her girlfriend’s hand and drags her to the storage closet. “Lena, I don't think we both can-" The words die on her lips when Lena throws open the door and steps in, immediately pulling Kara into her tightly. Once they are successfully as close as can be, Lena reaches past Kara and closes the door.</p><p>The green-eyed girl doesn't know if she's panting heavily because they may get caught or because her girlfriend's perfectly sculpted backside is pressed firmly against her front. They both tense when the door to the room opens and footsteps enter the room. Kara immediately starts shaking and Lena pulls her tightly against her, a hand on both of her hips. Her thumbs subconsciously rub back and forth across the soft skin under them in attempt to comfort the shaking girl in her arms. When the footsteps come closer to where they are hiding, Lena turns her head and presses her lips to Kara’s temple. She keeps them firmly planted there until the footsteps retreat further away from the closet and then exit the classroom. Deciding not to push their luck, both girls remain still just in case that was a test. After about 5 minutes, Lena slowly removes a hand from Kara’s hip and opens the door. She shuffles past the girl and peeks her head out of the closet.</p><p>"Stay here and get dressed, darling. I'll go check the hallway." Lena plants a quick kiss on her lips before heading to see if the coast is in fact clear. Kara quickly throws her clothes back on and joins Lena at the door.</p><p>"We good?" She whispers.</p><p>"I think so." Lena replies as she leads them into the hallway. After tip-toeing down the dark hallway, they finally make it back out on the concourse.</p><p>"What a night." Kara lets out a breath as she turns to face her wide-eyed girlfriend. "Lee, I'm sorry I wasn't thinking and I almost got us both in trouble and-"</p><p>Lena just shakes her head and shuts the rambling girl up with a kiss. Once she pulls back, she gazes into Kara’s confused eyes.</p><p>"You're not mad?" The blonde searches the green eyes looking back at her for any trace of anger, but she only finds tenderness.</p><p>"Mad? Darling, tonight has been one of the best nights of my life. It showed me that life with you will always be an adventure." Lena steps closer and rubs the back of her hand over Kara’s cheek. "Wanna know what else it showed me?"</p><p>Kara just nods, her blue eyes locked with the emerald ones in front of her.</p><p>"That I am falling so hard for you, Kara.” A grin spreads across the blonde’s features when her girlfriend’s words grace her ears. </p><p>Kara immediately leans in and plants a kiss to Lena’s red lips. “I’m falling for you too, Lena. Hard.” The blue-eyed girl starts planting kisses all over her girlfriend’s face. "See, I told you painting me would be fun.” Kara giggles and Lena’s heart does somersaults.<br/>_________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>_________________</p><p>"Lee?" Kara waves her hand in front of Lena’s face, effectively shaking the girl from her thoughts.</p><p>"Yeah?" The brunette looks at the girl in front of her with a wide smile on her face.</p><p>"Another memory?" Kara asks knowingly.</p><p>"Yeah, just remembering a really great night I had in college." She answers vaguely, still smiling at the girl in front of her.</p><p>"I'm sure you had a lot of those, huh?" Kara winks. "So just how many lucky girls got to experience the Luthor charm?" She asks, while subtly biting her lip.</p><p>"Just one. There's always only been just one." She answers and Kara, feeling flushed under Lena’s unwavering gaze, turns her attention back to the art on the wall.</p><p>Lena, however, keeps on staring at the art that's had her captivated since the first time she laid eyes on her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Chapter 17</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Thank you all so much for coming with me to New York. It really does mean so much to me." Kara smiles at her group of friends before loading her suitcase into the trunk of Lucy’s car.</p><p>"Wouldn't miss it for the world, dude." Lucy assures the blonde as she slides into the driver's seat.</p><p>"Yeah, Kar, we wouldn't miss this." Nia smiles at the blonde.</p><p>"Nia, you just didn't want to miss out on seeing New York." Alex chuckles and the brunette swats at her arm.</p><p>"We will always support you, darling." Lena replies and Kara, who opted to take the front next to Lucy, turns around to give her a warm smile.</p><p>"Thanks, Lee." Kara offers her a bright smile and Lucy scoffs.</p><p>"And Lucy and Nia and Alex." She reminds her best friend that Lena isn't the only one going on this trip.</p><p>"Thank you all." The blonde sticks her tongue out at Lucy before buckling her seat belt and tucking her feet under her. "What do you guys want to listen to?"</p><p>"Beyonce!" The engaged couple shouts in unison.</p><p>"The 1975." Lena suggests.</p><p>"Fletcher!" Alex pipes up.</p><p>Kara laughs at the different suggestions as she scrolls through her phone. "Ed Sheeran it is." She announces and they all roll their eyes.</p><p>"What in the hell was the point of you asking?" Lucy looks over at the girl incredulously.</p><p>The blonde just shrugs nonchalantly. "I was putting him on anyway. I just wanted to be nice and offer."</p><p>"You're lucky we love you... and the British ginger." Lucy shakes her head before returning her attention back to the road.</p><p>When they arrive at the airport, they board their plane and are off to the city that never sleeps.</p><p>"I hate planes." Lena voices her fear of flying as she wipes her sweaty palms on her jeans.</p><p>"Oh, so that's the reason you put me on the plane in Venice and didn't get on it yourself." Kara chuckles, but soon stops when Lena doesn't join in on the laughter. When she looks at the green-eyed girl, one of her perfectly sculpted eyebrows are raised. "Sorry." Kara smiles sheepishly.</p><p>"You love to make jokes about horrible moments don't you?" Lena shakes her head and Kara just shrugs.</p><p>"It's a defense mechanism, I guess. Laughing is better than dwelling on things you can't change." She answers honestly.</p><p>"You always see the positive in a negative situation. One of the many things I adore about you." Lena admits and Kara feels a blush creeping up on her cheeks. Instead of answering, she just leans her head on Lena’s shoulder.</p><p>"Can I tell you a secret?" The blue-eyed girl asks, her voice only a whisper.</p><p>"Always." Lena promises.</p><p>"I'm scared that they'll want to sign me. If they sign me, I'll have to release my songs into the world and I'll have to listen to people criticize them and me if they don't like them." The musician voices her concerns.</p><p>"There will be people who will criticize your music. I can assure you that. However, there will also be people who will fall in love with your songs. There will be people who listen to them when they need to be cheered up and people who listen to them when they need a song to mend their broken heart. There will be boys and girls of all ages who will idolize you because your music changed their lives." Lena pauses for a moment to gather her thoughts. "I've heard your music, Kara. It's fucking amazing. Those songs deserve to be released into the world because the world always could use some good music to make it a better place. There are people out there who are searching for sounds that they've never heard before and your sound could be just what they are searching for." Lena smiles as she studies the girl laying on her shoulder.</p><p>"You always know the right things to say, Lee." Kara slowly lifts her head up and places a quick kiss on the green-eyed girl's cheek. When she pulls back, Lena sees the tears swimming in her eyes. "I hope that my words can have as much of an impact on someone as your words have on me." The brunette nods and continues to look at her wife lovingly.</p><p>Kara’s stomach flutters as Lena continues to gaze at her like she's the most precious thing in the world. The blonde lays her head back on Lena’s shoulder so the girl cannot see how red her face is getting. After a couple minutes of comfortable silence, Kara flutters her eyes closed, the sound of Lena’s heartbeat lulling her to sleep. The green-eyed girl smiles when she hears soft snores coming from the girl laying on her shoulder. She slowly turns her head to the side and places a tender kiss to Kara’s temple, only removing her lips when she sees a flash go off. She immediately looks up to see Lucy peeping over the seat in front of them, her phone in her hand and a smirk evident on her face.</p><p>Lena just raises a questioning eyebrow.</p><p>"What? I'm just doing my official photographer duties." Lucy shrugs nonchalantly before Nia pulls her back down in a sitting position.</p><p>"I'll send it to you when we get off the plane." Lucy whispers between the cracks of the seat and Lena chuckles.</p><p>“Okay, thanks." She answers before carefully grabbing Kara’s hand that is resting in her lap. She interlaces their hands and plays with the girl's slender fingers for the rest of the fight while listening to her quiet snores.</p><p>After the plane lands they all wait outside on the Uber. It only takes about 30 minutes to get to the hotel from the airport and when they finally arrive at their hotel in Times Square, they all pile into their rooms. After arguing about who's sleeping with who, they decide on Alex, Kara, and Lena in one room and the engaged couple in the other. It was decided that the other three girls would be rooming together after Lucy announced that who ever slept in their room with them would have to be okay with her sleeping in the nude. Nia made a comment about how she is more than okay with it and the three remaining girls raced to the room across from them, opting to give Nia and Lucy their space.</p><p>After putting their bags in their room, Nia and Lucy make their way into the other room to visit with the girls. They walk in to find Kara pacing nervously in front of the beds.</p><p>"Holy crap." The blonde voices. "In an hour I'll be pitching my songs, my songs, to an actual record label."</p><p>"Dude, stop pacing before you make a hole in the carpet and we have to pay for the damage." Lucy walks over to her best friend and places her hands on the girl's shoulders to halt her movements. "They've already heard your songs considering you put most of them on YouTube."</p><p>"Yeah, but I put the best ones on there so what if they don't like my others?" She panics and Lena takes this as her cue to step in.</p><p>"Kara, remember what I told you on the plane?" Lena asks and waits for Kara’s nod. "Well remember that and go in that meeting with your head held high."</p><p>"Will you go with me?" Kara juts out her bottom lip.</p><p>"You know I would, but I promised to meet up with my friend Andrea since I'm here." Lena frowns.</p><p>"Yeah." Kara nods sadly, her bottom lip still protruded. It takes everything in Lena not to lean forward and kiss the pout off her lips.</p><p>"Luce?" Kara turns to her best friend.</p><p>Lucy just lets out a sigh. "Kar, you know I got your back, but I promised Nia we would explore the city."</p><p>Kara doesn't even bother asking Alex because she knows the girl has an important meeting about the future of her business. "I get it." The blonde forces a small smile and grabs her purse. "You guys have fun!" She calls back as she exits the hotel room.</p><p>"Kar-" Lena tries, but the door shuts. "Shit, I feel horrible. I'm going to cancel with Andrea." She goes to reach for her phone, but Lucy stops her.</p><p>"Lena, you put your own life on hold for her all the time. You always put her first. It's okay to put yourself first sometimes." Lucy pats the girl on the shoulder and Lena just sighs, knowing good and well that Lucy is right.</p><p>“My sister knows we love her and we will all celebrate tonight when she signs the contract." Alex rationalizes and the other three just nod. "So everyone go do your thing and meet back here by 5 pm."</p><p>A half hour later and Kara finds herself sitting in the lobby of the building. She wipes her hands on her dress for the millionth time as she waits. The receptionist told her it would be a little while because Eric is still in a meeting.</p><p>About fifteen minutes later, a door directly in front of Kara opens and the eager girl stands up quickly, her songbook clutched tightly in her left hand. A man in a suit steps out of the room and makes his way over to her.</p><p>"Ms. Danvers. It's nice to finally meet you in person." The man greets her. "I'm Eric, the guy you have been in contact with." He extends his hand and Kara shakes it, hoping that her hand isn't as sweaty as she thinks it is.</p><p>"It's nice to meet you in person too, Eric. Thank you for flying my friends and I out here." She offers a smile and Eric just waves his hand in front of him.</p><p>"You don't have to thank me for that. Just repay me with good music." He smiles. "Shall we?" He gestures to the room he just walked out of and Kara follows him in there. She sees four other people in the room sitting at a round table.</p><p>"Kara, this is the label's Director of A&amp;R, our A&amp;R coordinator, our A&amp;R administrator, and of course, our notary." Eric points to the four people at the table and Kara waves at them.</p><p>"Hi, I'm Kara Danvers." She announces before walking over to each one and shaking their hands. They all smile and offer a polite greeting. Eric then pulls out a chair and she sits down in it.</p><p>"Okay, so we are going to start off today by you pitching your songs to us. I told you to come prepared with a list of songs you would include on your ideal album." Eric speaks up as he folds his hands together and sets them on the table in front of him.</p><p>Kara nods and opens up her songbook. "So you have all probably heard most of my ideal album because they are the songs on YouTube. Everything Has Changed, Green Eyes, Say You Won't Let Go, She Is Love, and Superhero." She lists out a few of her songs. "I wrote a new song a couple of days ago called How Would You Feel and it hasn't been put on YouTube yet."</p><p>"One condition." Eric holds up his pointer finger and Kara just nods. "You play it for us right now."</p><p>"Sure, yeah." She answers immediately.</p><p>"Okay then." He stands up and grabs the acoustic guitar that is propped up by the wall. He walks over and hands it off to Kara.</p><p>"May I?" She asks while pointing to the stool in the corner of the room. When Eric just shoots her a thumbs up, she drags the stool to the front of the table. After sitting down and making sure the guitar is perfectly in tune, she looks up. She smiles momentarily before strumming the chords.</p><p>You are the one girl<br/>And you know that it's true<br/>I'm feeling younger<br/>Every time that I'm alone with you</p><p>We were sitting in a parked car<br/>Stealing kisses in the front yard<br/>We got questions we should not ask but</p><p>How would you feel, if I told you I loved you?<br/>It's just something that I want to do<br/>I'll be taking my time, spending my life<br/>Falling deeper in love with you<br/>So tell me that you love me too</p><p>In the summer, as the lilacs bloom<br/>Love flows deeper than the river<br/>Every moment that I spend with you<br/>We were sat upon our best friend's roof<br/>I had both of my arms round you<br/>Watching the sunrise replace the moon</p><p>How would you feel, if I told you I loved you?<br/>It's just something that I want to do<br/>I'll be taking my time, spending my life<br/>Falling deeper in love with you<br/>So tell me that you love me too</p><p>We were sitting in a parked car<br/>Stealing kisses in the front yard<br/>We got questions we should not ask</p><p>How would you feel, if I told you I loved you?<br/>It's just something that I want to do<br/>I'll be taking my time, spending my life<br/>Falling deeper in love with you<br/>So tell me that you love me too<br/>Tell me that you love me too<br/>Tell me that you love me too</p><p>When she plays the last note, everyone in the room stands to their feet and claps. Kara just blushes and looks down at the guitar. </p><p>"Told you, a star." Eric looks at his colleagues and they all nod their heads in agreement.</p><p>"Thank you." Kara smiles shyly.</p><p>"Kara, how would you like to sign a record deal with us? We want to produce your EP and hopefully many more albums after that."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Chapter 18</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"So how's the wifey?" Andrea asks. “Sam told me everything. You know you could've told me." Andrea frowns before reaching for her cup of coffee and taking a sip of it.</p><p>"I know, but I didn't want to have to tell everyone. It's painful to even talk about so I told Sam to tell you and Veronica about everything." Lena runs her fingers through her hair. "Kara is... better. Her panic attacks are becoming less frequent so that's a blessing. She's slowly starting to get more comfortable around me and she's even remembering some of her attack."</p><p>"Lena, that's great that she is remembering. Maybe she will remember everything with time." Andrea offers the green-eyed girl a hopeful smile. "Is she still with-"</p><p>"I don't think so." Lena cuts her off, not really wanting to hear the boy's name. </p><p>“Well, I've seen first hand how much you love that girl. I watched you two exchange vows. I'm sure you are doing an incredible job of showing her how much you love her." Andrea smiles sadly and Lena offers her one in return before turning her attention to her phone that's vibrating on the table. She sees 5 new texts from Lucy and then looks at the time.</p><p>5:00 pm.</p><p>“Shit, I gotta get back to the hotel. Kara should be out of her meeting by now." Lena lays a twenty dollar bill on the table before standing up. "I'll text you tonight if we decide to go out." She leans down and plants a quick kiss on her friend's cheek.</p><p>"Bye, Lena." Andrea calls after the girl.</p><p>As soon as she makes it back to the hotel, she sees that Lucy, Nia, and Alex are all standing out in front of the room with flowers and a bottle of champagne.</p><p>"Bout time!" Lucy announces when she sees Lena jogging down the hallway.</p><p>"She back?" Lena asks as she digs out the key from her purse.</p><p>"Well you're the one with the key so..." Lucy states and Lena rolls her eyes as she slides the key in and opens the door. When she steps in, a small smile crawls to her lips as she takes in the sight of Kara sleeping soundly. She immediately puts her arm out to stop Lucy from unpleasantly waking her up by jumping on her or something.</p><p>"Ugh, you're no fun." Lucy huffs and Lena walks over and sits down on the side of the bed.</p><p>"Wake up, pretty girl." She leans down and whispers in Kara’s ear. The blonde stirs awake and lets out a yawn while stretching. Lena swoons because her wife looks so adorable with her messy hair and sleepy eyes.</p><p>"Hi, Lee." She rasps out as she stifles another yawn.</p><p>"Hi, sleepyhead." Lena smiles at the girl.</p><p>"Jesus, don't keep us waiting. How did it go?" Lucy pipes up from across the room and Nia slaps her arm.</p><p>"I, uh, they didn't like my songs." Kara fakes a frown and looks down at the bedspread.</p><p>Silence fills the air.</p><p>“Darling, I'm-" Lena starts.</p><p>"They loved them!" Kara announces and all the girls jump on the bed in excitement.</p><p>"Jesus, Kar you gave me a heart attack!" Lucy announces as she pushes the girl's shoulder.</p><p>"Alex was back here trying to find somewhere to hide the flowers and champagne." Nia snorts and all the girls double over in laughter.</p><p>"You should've seen your faces!" Kara claps her hands together. "Oh, I crack myself up sometimes." The blonde laughs while the other four girls just stare at her, slightly amused and slightly annoyed at the scare she gave them.</p><p>"Well good thing you crack yourself up because ain't nobody else laughing." Lucy pats the girl's leg.</p><p>“They wanted to uh sign me as an artist, but after careful consideration, I realized that I didn’t want that. So I asked about just being a songwriter for them and they really liked the idea. I’ll write songs for other artists and get paid for it, but I won’t have to deal with all the fame.” Kara explains.</p><p>“Well if that’s the route you want to go, we will support you all the way.” Alex walks over and gives her sister a hug. “I can’t wait to hear all your songs on the radio.”</p><p>“Me either! So who's up for a celebration?" Nia chimes in.</p><p>"You read my mind, babe." Lucy immediately jumps up from the bed.</p><p>"Luce, I didn't bring anything to wear out." Kara groans.</p><p>"Well good thing I brought you something to wear." Lucy smirks and Kara just lays back down on the bed.</p><p>"I'm not getting out of this am I?" She asks, already knowing the answer.</p><p>"No."</p><p>"Nope."</p><p>"Not a chance." All the girls answer simultaneously.</p><p>"Fine, I'll be over shortly to get my highly inappropriate, I'm guessing, dress." The blonde sits back up and faces Lucy.</p><p>"You know me so well." Lucy pats her best friend's head. "Damn right it's inappropriate. We are in the Big Apple and you are a songwriter for Atlantic Records now." </p><p>"Lets plan to be ready by 8 pm and then we will head out then." Nia smiles as she drags her fiancé to the door.</p><p>"Kar, come over in like an hour or two and I'll do your makeup." Lucy announces as she stands at the door.</p><p>"Or I could just do it." Lena chimes in and Kara turns her head to look at the brunette.</p><p>"You don't mind?" Kara raises an eyebrow.</p><p>"Of course not, darling. I know how much you hate doing your own make up." Lena offers her a smile and Kara matches it.</p><p>"Nia." Lucy whispers, still at the doorway. “My ship is sailing." The brunette nudges the girl beside her and Nia just places a quick peck on her cheek.</p><p>"I'm in love with a hopeless romantic." Nia states as she watches Lucy stare at Kara and Lena with her hand over her heart.</p><p>Two hours later and Kara, Alex, and Lena are almost ready. The only thing left is Kara’s makeup and her dress.</p><p>"Kara." Lena announces as she puts the finishing touches on her own lipstick. When the girl appears in the doorway, Lena pats the bathroom counter. "C'mere."</p><p>The blonde pads over and lifts herself up on the counter. Once she's settled, Lena stands in between her legs and dabs some foundation on her sponge. As she's applying the makeup, she once again sees the bruises that are still evident on the girl's neck.</p><p>"They are fading, slowly, but they are starting to fade." Kara speaks up as Lena carefully applies the liquid make up to the area. The brunette just nods and continues to do Kara’s makeup. They spend the next few minutes in silence, until Kara breaks it.</p><p>"When he had me pinned against the wall, I-uh remembered more of the attack." Lena, who had been focusing on applying blush to the girl's cheek, shifts her gaze to the dreamy blue eyes focused on her. The green-eyed girl wants to ask what she remembered, but she doesn't know if she can handle the new information. "I remembered the knife breaking through the skin on my neck and I remembered him bashing my head into the wall. It was like I was back there in that moment and I could feel what I felt then." Lena tenses up. "I hit my knees and fell to the ground after the first blow and then when I was face first on the concrete, he continued to kick my head until everything went black." The blonde replays what she remembers back to Lena and watches as a tear falls from the girl's eyes. Kara is quick to brush it away with her thumb so that it doesn't mess up the brunette's flawlessly done make up.</p><p>"No crying, green eyes." Kara chastises, a small, sympathetic smile making it's way to her lips.</p><p>"I'm sorry." Lena chokes out, her voice thick with emotion. Kara brings her hands up to the girls face and places them on her ivory cheeks.</p><p>"Stop apologizing." Kara shakes her head. "And finish my makeup so I can look decent going out tonight. I mean there may be paparazzi following us since I am a signed musician now." Kara wiggles her eyebrows.</p><p>"Good to know that fame hasn't changed you." Lena chuckles as she shakes her head at the girl. "Now close those baby blues of yours and let me apply some eye makeup." Kara does as she's told and flutters her eyes closed.</p><p>Lena immediately leans forward as she concentrates on the task at hand. Shivers run down Kara’s spine when she feels Lena’s breath hit her lips. After a couple of minutes, Lena speaks up. "Okay you can open." She whispers, her lips only inches from Kara’s.</p><p>When Kara opens her eyes, her heart flutters when she sees Lena’s green eyes and red lips only inches from her own eyes and lips. She subconsciously licks her lips and Lena clears her throat when she sees Kara do it. She knows that if she doesn't look away, all of her willpower will go down the drain. "So I'm thinking a light pink shade of lipstick. That good with you?"</p><p>Kara just nods her head, still evidently flushed from how close her face had just been to Lena’s. Once the brunette applies the lipstick, she steps back and admires her work.</p><p>"You'll be the prettiest girl in the club tonight, hands down." Lena smiles tenderly at her.</p><p>"Not possible, that title already belongs to you." Kara shoots back and a blush creeps up on Lena’s cheeks. "Now worst dancer in the club tonight, that will be my title." She winks and then hops off the counter so she can make her way to the door. "Going to get my dress, I'll be back."</p><p>Lena just nods and watches as Kara exits the room.</p><p>After wiggling into the tiny dress that Lucy brought her, she turns to her best friend, her hands on her hips. “I think inappropriate might be an understatement." Kara says as she tugs on the bottom of the black sequin dress in a desperate attempt to make it longer. She hates drawing people's attention. She would rather just blend in with the crowd or stay at home and watch Netflix while dressed in one of her onesies.</p><p>"Kar, you look hot." Lucy scans the blonde in front of her and then turns back around to finish putting on her lipstick. "And I'm sure there's a certain green-eyed girl who will be thanking me tonight." Lucy whispers the last part.</p><p>"What was that?" Kara raises an eyebrow at the brunette.</p><p>"Nothing." Lucy waves her off and shoves the lipsticks in her purse. "Lena texted and said her and Alex are almost ready. Why don't you go and get them." Lucy suggests as she drags Kara with her to the door. The blonde’s protest dies on her lips when Lucy blindly shoves her out of the door toward the door on the opposite side.</p><p>About the same time, Lena swings the door open and steps out. She takes one step toward the door in front of her, but as soon as she does, it swings open and a blonde comes stumbling her way. Her body collides with Lena’s and the green-eyed girl immediately wraps her arms around Kara in an attempt to steady her.</p><p>Kara braces for impact with the hotel door so she is pleasantly surprised when she collides with a person instead. She quickly steps back after she’s caught and a small blush creeps up on her cheeks after she realizes she almost took Lena out.</p><p>"I'm so sorry, Lee. Lucy pushed me out of the door and told me to knock on our door, but I got tripped up and I ended up almost knocking you down instead and-" Kara rambles until she feels Lena’s soft hands come in contact with her slightly pink cheeks.</p><p>"Breathe, darling." Lena lets out a hearty laugh. "You didn't knock me down. I'm glad I walked out when I did or else we would probably have a Kara shaped hole in our hotel door."</p><p>This time Kara lets out a laugh that is music to Lena’s ears and points to the door behind her. "Well you would have Lucy to thank for that. Speaking of the devil, let me go get her so we can make it to the club before everyone leaves." Kara offers Lena a lopsided smile before turning on her heels and opening the door and sticking her head in. With Kara turned around, Lena takes the time to scan Kara’s body for the first time tonight. Lena’s eyes widen and her jaw drops when she takes in the girl who is screaming for Lucy to "hurry the heck up."</p><p>Lena gulps when she sees the short black dress her wife is wearing. She's quite torn between wanting to rip it off the girl's body and make love to her right here in between their two rooms and wanting to throw a jacket over her so no one sees her in this exceptionally revealing dress.</p><p>So she opts to go back in their room and grab one of her jackets... you know, just in case Kara happens to get cold or something.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Chapter 19</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>All five of the girls pile into the Uber and make their way to the club. As they all walk up to the building, Lena realizes that her predictions were accurate: all eyes are on the girl in the black dress beside her. The green-eyed girl makes it her job to send glares to anyone staring at the girl next to her for longer than 3 seconds.</p><p>Kara’s cheeks stay red as she makes her way to the front of the club. There are a lot of stares that make her stomach churn and she finds herself wanting to turn around and go back to the hotel. She self-consciously pulls at the bottom of her dress, hoping it will miraculously reach to cover her knees, even though she knows it's impossible.</p><p>Sensing the blonde’s distress, Lena reaches out and snakes an arm around Kara’s waist. Her heart warms when she sees a small smile play on Kara’s lips. Lena mentally high fives herself when she notices that the men and women have stopped looking when they see that the two girls are connected. When it's her turn to enter the club, she makes sure to send a death glare to the bouncer at the door who practically drooled over Kara for a solid 10 seconds. Fucking pervert.</p><p>Once they get in, they find a booth that can fit all five of them.</p><p>As soon as they do, Kara drags Lucy to the dance floor while Nia and Lena grab drinks and Alex saves the booth. Eventually, Alex and Nia join them and hand both girls a drink. When Kara asks where Lena is, they tell her that she said she had to make a phone call. Kara just shrugs it off and continues to dance. Alex and Nia are the first to get worn out so they make their way back to the booth and Lucy and Kara aren't too far behind them. Lucy plops into the booth next to Nia.</p><p>Kara stands by the booth, opting not to slide in. "I'll go get us some drinks refills." </p><p>"Amaretto Sour." Lucy yells enthusiastically while slinging an arm around her fiancé.</p><p>"Blue Motherfucker, please." Nia politely chimes in.</p><p>"I'll take a Vodka Cranberry." Alex pipes up. Kara nods and turns her attention to the green-eyed girl.</p><p>"Want another?" The blonde addresses Lena.</p><p>”Another whiskey neat." She offers the girl in front of her a small smile.</p><p>“Noted." Kara winks at the green-eyed girl before turning on her heels to head to the bar. She places her palms on the sticky surface of the bar and waits for the bartender to make his way over to her. Unfortunately, someone else makes their way over first.</p><p>“Hey, sexy." A guy slides onto the bar stool next to where she's standing.</p><p>"Not interested. I'm taken." She recites, having done this many times before. She doesn't even give the guy trying to hit on her a single glance.</p><p>"I don't see him around." The guys leans closer to her. The blonde panics when she realizes that she doesn't really have a significant other at the moment.</p><p>"Her, actually. She's sitting at the booth in the corner. Brown hair, killer green eyes, you can't miss her.” Kara says, her eyes still searching for a bartender.</p><p>She hears the man scoff and she finally looks his way. "The one hanging all over another girl?"</p><p>"That's just my friend Luc—" The words die on her lips as she looks back to the booth and sees the green-eyed girl hanging on someone who is definitely not Lucy or any of their friends.</p><p>Kara’s jaw clenches, along with her fists, as she watches Lena interlace her hands with the stranger. Her face gets hot and her vision goes blurry when she sees Lena lay her head on the girl's shoulder after planting a kiss on it. It's then that she finally allows herself to take in Lena’s appearance tonight. She looks absolutely stunning. Her straight hair is swept over her right shoulder and her red lips are curved into a smile that reaches to her green eyes that are made more prominent by the dark eye shadow she's wearing. She is wearing a simple olive green dress and as Kara scans her outfit, it is then that she notices that Lena is not wearing the wedding ring around her neck tonight. Her heart sinks to the ground and she turns her attention back to the man sitting next to her while her mind decides to chastise her heart. “You don't own her, Kara. She's not even yours.” The blonde thinks.</p><p>"A couple of shots couldn't hurt." She shrugs and the guy slams a fifty-dollar bill on the counter before getting the bartenders attention.</p><p>Kara throws back every shot that is slid in front of her. She loves how the jealousy seems to fade away with each shot she takes... so she takes more. After her fourth, she looks back over to the table and sees all five of the girls laughing uncontrollably. Lucy is doubled over in the booth laughing and Kara rolls her eyes. "Thanks a lot, Luce." She mumbles before taking another shot and walking away from the bar. The blonde decides to make a pit stop at the bathroom. The endless shots and the drink from earlier went through her relatively fast.</p><p>She weaves through the hallway in the back of the club until she finally finds the bathroom. The blonde walks to the sink and sets her hands on either side of it before looking at herself in the mirror. "You're not jealous." She slurs as she reprimands her heart for feeling these emotions.</p><p>Meanwhile, Lena laughs at another one of the stories that Andrea is telling Nia, Lucy, and Alex about their childhood. "I missed you, Andy." Lena tells the girl as she holds her stomach in attempt to stop the muscles from aching from all the laughter.</p><p>"Yeah, well you moved out of the country with Kara and left me here with Sam and Veronica." Andrea whines and at the mention of Kara’s name, Lena subconsciously lifts up her hand to caress the wedding ring hanging from her neck. Only it's not there. Lena curses herself for forgetting to put on one of her most valuable possessions.</p><p>"Where is Kar, anyways? She's been gone forever." Lucy questions and Lena’s head shoots up. She frantically scans the bar area and panics when she doesn't see her blue-eyed beauty anywhere. Her heart starts beating so loudly in her chest that she can't even hear the music playing anymore.</p><p>Lena forcefully pushes Andrea out of the booth and when she gets out, she mumbles a quick apology to her childhood friend.</p><p>"Kara." She yells while frantically searching the dimly lit night club. "Fuck." She runs her fingers though her hair before running to the bar and slamming her hands on the counter. This effectively gets the bartender's attention. "Beautiful blonde, blue eyes, black dress."</p><p>Lena sees the guy's eyes light up in recognition. "She headed toward the back area a couple of minutes ago."</p><p>"Thanks." She breathes out before jogging to the back of the club in search of the blue-eyed girl.</p><p>Meanwhile, Kara’s is standing outside the women’s restroom, repeatedly shoving away the man from the bar who keeps telling her that she “owes him because he bought her shots.”</p><p>“I don’t owe you a thing!” The blonde shouts as she shoves her palms into the man’s chest. Luckily, he’s pretty drunk so he doesn’t have a lot of strength or balance. This makes it pretty easy for her to fend him off. </p><p>“I bought you shots so you owe me something in return!” The man lunges at her again. She backs up and gets ready to shove him again.</p><p>“I said no!” Kara holds her hands out in front of her, but before they make contact with his chest, he’s pulled away from her. The next thing she sees is the man being pinned up against the wall by a very livid brunette.</p><p>"No means no, you son of a bitch." Lena connects her fist with the guy's nose and he slumps to the ground. When he doesn’t move, the green-eyed girl looks up at Kara. Her eyes are glossed over and her jaw is hanging open.</p><p>Lena slowly makes her way over to the shaking girl, her hands reaching up to cup the blonde’s tear-stained cheeks.</p><p>"Baby, can you look at me? Please look at me." Lena begs, her eyes welling up with tears.</p><p>Kara’s blue eyes find Lena’s green ones and the brunette’s heart breaks at how distant and cold the normally warm and vibrant blue eyes look. Kara takes a step back, effectively making Lena’s hands fall from her face, and starts walking down the hallway back to the bar area.</p><p>"Kara!" Lena calls out.</p><p>"I'm fine, Lena." The blue-eyed girl calls back without even turning around. Lena quickly jogs to catch up to the girl and steps in front of her.</p><p>"Kara please-"</p><p>"I said I'm fine!" Kara raises her voice and glares at the green-eyed girl before her.</p><p>"Baby, talk to me. Please." Lena pleads with the blonde.</p><p>"Why do you even care? Just go back out there and hang out with your new friend. She's the reason you aren't wearing the necklace tonight, right?" Kara slurs as she sways a little.</p><p>"Andrea?" The green-eyed girl questions.</p><p>"Andrea?" Kara mimics Lena’s voice and in any other situation Lena would probably laugh at drunk Kara, but right now is not the time. "I don't care who she is, Lena." Kara spits out before crossing her arms.</p><p>Lena knows she's drunk so she doesn't really know what she's saying, but someone did once tell her that drunk words are sober thoughts. Lena would actually be ecstatic that the blue-eyed girl is jealous, but right now she needs the same girl to know that she only has eyes for her.</p><p>"Kara, it's Andrea. We've been friends since childhood. " She informs the drunk girl in front of her. "And I just forgot to put on any jewelry tonight, darling. I promise I'll wear the ring around my neck until you want it back." Lena notices that Kara’s bottom lip has started to tremble and she knows what's coming next.</p><p>"Where were you?" Kara chokes out. "Where were you, Lena?" Her solemn state turns to a state of rage that is directed toward Lena. The green-eyed girl knows the question has a double meaning to it. She knows the blonde isn't just talking about tonight, she's talking about a year ago too. Lena expected this outburst when the two reunited, but it never came because Kara couldn't remember. Now that the girl is getting some of her memories back, it only makes sense that the outburst is happening now.</p><p>"I almost died, Lena. Do you get that? I almost died." A small hiccup escapes from Kara’s lips. "And you weren't there." She pokes her finger into Lena’s chest. </p><p>Lena wipes away the tears that are freely falling down her face. She wants to speak up, but she knows that Kara needs to say her piece so she stays quiet.</p><p>"We were married and no I don't remember it, but I've seen pictures and I know we were. Why did you send me away?" The musician wipes away the tears that are streaming down her face with the back of her trembling hand.</p><p>"Kara, I had to keep you-"</p><p>"Don't say safe." She points a finger at Lena. "Don't you dare say safe because obviously my life has not been safe since the day you put me on that plane alone." She moves her hair from her face and points to the bruises on her neck. "Does this look safe to you, Lena? Huh?" Kara laughs bitterly. "You're the reason I can't remember our life together. You put me on that stupid plane and now I can't remember years of my life." Kara bites her trembling lip in attempt to stop it from doing just that.</p><p>“There it is.” Lena thinks.</p><p>The green-eyed girl can't take it anymore so she quickly closes the distance between the two of them and takes the trembling girl into her arms. Kara’s fists rest on Lena’s chest as she fights the hug.</p><p>"Let me go! You did it once, it shouldn't be hard to do it again!" The blonde screams as she bangs her fists into Lena’s chest. The latter only tightens her grip and whispers sweet nothings in Kara’s ear to try and get the intoxicated girl to calm down. When Kara realizes Lena isn't letting go, she drops her hands to her side and buries her face in the crook of Lena’s neck.</p><p>Lena slides down on the floor with Kara still in her arms and pulls her onto her lap. "I'm sorry, darling." She kisses the side of her head over and over again while Kara grips the back of her dress. "I'll never let you go again."</p><p>About a half hour later, Lena hears Kara’s breathing even out. She looks down at the girl who has her face tucked in the crook of her neck and she gently brushes some hair from her face. Lena looks up when she sees someone enter the hall area and her eyes meet Lucy’s. The brunette’s eyebrows knit together when she takes in the man knocked out on the floor and the sleeping blonde in Lena’s arms.</p><p>"I'll tell you later. Let's just get her to the hotel, yeah?" Lena stands up with the girl in her arms. "Go get a bouncer and tell them this man assaulted a lady and that he needs to be dealt with." Lucy’s eyes grow wider and she turns on her heels to go find security.</p><p>The green-eyed girl carries the blonde back into the bar area and then outside, where luckily a bunch of taxis are already waiting to pick people up.</p><p>Lena opens the back seat of the taxi and carefully lays Kara down before sliding in next to her. She places the blonde’s head on her lap and finds herself alternating between combing through her hair and tracing Kara’s somber features. The art teacher runs her thumb over her wife's soft lips and down her jaw. She continues the movements until the taxi pulls up to their hotel. Lena carries the sleeping girl to their room and lays her on the bed. She starts to rummage through Kara’s suitcase until she finds pajama pants and a t-shirt. Lena quickly slides the pants over the blonde’s toned legs and then slides the dress off the girl. The brunette turns her head as she exposes Kara’s chest area. She's seen it all a million times, but that was when Kara was awake and very much in love with her. Lena doesn't want to overstep any boundaries, even if Kara is her wife.</p><p>She turns off all the lights and grabs Kara’s hand. She brings it up to her lips and kisses every knuckle before laying it back down on the bed. "I love you so much and I'm so sorry for not protecting you like I should." Lena runs the back of her hand over Kara’s soft cheek. "You are the love of my life, Kara Danvers, and I will never give up on you." The green-eyed girl chokes out before leaning in and placing a tender kiss near her wife's lips. She covers her up before exiting the room. She knows the three girls she left at the club will be back to the hotel any minute now and she will have to fill them in on everything that happened tonight.</p>
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<a name="section0020"><h2>20. Chapter 20</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Jesus, Lena. Breathe." Lucy places a comforting hand on the green-eyed girl’s leg.</p><p>"I'm trying, but it's easier said than done." Lena bounces her leg nervously.</p><p>Currently, Lucy, Lena, Alex, and Nia are sitting on a wooden bench in the local courthouse awaiting the trial of Kara’s attacker. This past weekend, Kara received a call from Maggie that said that the trial would be the following weekend.</p><p>Currently, Lena is a nervous wreck and it doesn't help that she hasn't gotten to see Kara for like a week. The girl has been at the courthouse in a room somewhere with her lawyer prepping for the trial. The green-eyed girl cannot shake the sick feeling in her stomach because she knows she is going to have to see and hear things today that won't be pleasant. One of those being the man that caused her wife to forget every bit of time that they spent together. Kara also warned her that they would be showing images of her after the attack. Just the thought of seeing her wife in that state absolutely petrifies Lena.</p><p>The art teacher was successfully tuning out everything around her, until she saw the judge enter. She immediately rose to her feet along with everyone else in the courtroom. Soon after, Kara enters with her lawyer and Lena’s heart skips a beat. She looks absolutely adorable in her little pencil skirt and blouse, but there is fear laced in those beautiful blue eyes of hers and Lena just wants to hold her and promise her that it will all be okay.</p><p>Unfortunately, she doesn't get long to enjoy her wife's beautiful presence because seconds after Kara walks in, the back door swings open and a scruffy man in an orange jumpsuit enters. As he passes by, Lena catches a glimpse of the spiderweb tattoo on his neck. He is wearing a smirk as he gazes forward and Lena follows his eyes to see that he is smirking at her wife. Kara, however, has her head down, her sight is on her hands that are folded neatly in her lap. The blonde cannot bring herself to look up and Lena cannot bring herself to stop drilling holes in the side of his head. </p><p>The brunette is broken from her thoughts and her staring when she feels a hand cover her right hand, the one currently gripping the edge of the wooden bench. She averts her eyes from Kara’s attacker and locks eyes with Alex’s sympathetic ones.</p><p>"We'll get through this. She’ll get through this.” Alex assures the nervous girl and her tone is so convincing that Lena finds herself believing the woman.</p><p>The trial begins and Lena finds herself tuning out most of it, up until Kara is called to the stand.</p><p>"Ms. Danvers, can you please describe what you remember the night of the attack?" The defense attorney questions.</p><p>"I uh had brain damage so I can't remember much, but I do remember being pushed up against a brick wall and having a knife pressed to my throat. I remember the man had a spiderweb tattoo on his neck." Kara shudders at the memory. "I remember my head being shoved against the wall and then when I fell to the ground, I was kicked in the head until I blacked out.”</p><p>"So you don't remember anything else?" He asks.</p><p>"No." Kara shakes her head.</p><p>"The girl has brain damage and memory loss. How can she adequately accuse my client of attacking her?" He questions the jury.</p><p>"If I may, your Honor." Kara’s lawyer stands up. When the judge nods, he speaks. "The police found that your client's DNA matched the DNA on Ms. Danvers’ body after the attack."</p><p>"Well what if my client stopped to help the girl and that is why she remembers him being there?" The defense attorney counters.</p><p>"Well, call him up on the stand and we will find out." Kara’s lawyer circles the table and stands in front of it. The judge motions for the defendant to stand up and Kara does the same. She leaves the stand and cringes as she walks past the man in the orange jumpsuit.</p><p>"Hey, baby." The man whispers and Kara freezes. More images from the attack come back in flashes and she remembers walking out of a hotel and coming face to face with a man, who immediately shoves her against a wall. She remembers feeling a cold metal object being pressed to her neck and then she hears a raspy voice whisper "hey, baby."</p><p>Lena watches as Kara freezes after she passes the criminal. She immediately scoots to the edge of the bench as she watches the girl completely zone out. She sees the blood drain from Kara’s face and Lena goes to stand up, but Lucy stops her.</p><p>"Ms. Danvers." Kara hears someone call her name and she immediately snaps out of her thoughts. She quickly scans her eyes around the court house and sees everyone staring at her before locking eyes with the judge. The woman gestures to the table she was previously sitting at and Kara walks over and sits down.</p><p>"Mr. Chandler can you please describe to us what you were doing the night of August 18, 2016?" Kara’s lawyer questions.</p><p>"I was coming home from the bar and I bumped into that chick there." He points to Kara.</p><p>The lawyer just nods. "Well then how do you explain your DNA being on her wrist, head, and neck?"</p><p>The man tenses. "I told you, I bumped into the bitch!" He raises his voice and Lena immediately clenches both of her hands into a tight fist.</p><p>"Well if you bumped into her, how do you explain your skin cells being under my client's fingernails?" The lawyer steps closer to the stand while the man just shrugs.</p><p>Kara has flashes of her clawing the man's face as he presses the knife deeper into her throat. She reaches out a shaky hand to get her water. She takes a sip to try and wash down the lump in her throat, even though she knows it's not going anywhere anytime soon.</p><p>"Well, what I think happened is you followed Ms. Danvers out of the hotel bar so you could rob her." The lawyer continues when the defendant doesn't answer his last question.</p><p>"You have no proof." The criminal spits.</p><p>"I have pictures." The lawyer grabs photos from his briefcase and a bag with a bloody knife in it. "I also have a knife with your fingerprints on it." Kara’s lawyer hands the pictures to one of the members of the jury and they place them under a camera so that they are displayed on a screen for the rest of the jury and everyone in the courthouse to see.</p><p>Bile rises in Lena’s throat as she watches the slideshow of pictures. The first is a picture of Kara laying in a hospital bed with white bandages wrapped around her head and neck, her face and body bruised and bloody. The second is of the place where it happened. You can visibly see the blood lining the pavement and Lena’s stomach comes up in her throat because she knows all that blood belonged to her wife. The third picture is what causes the tears to start to fall freely. It is a picture of Kara in the ambulance right after the attack. There are paramedics surrounded her and blood is pouring down the front of her face from the gashes on her head. Lena can also see the deep gash in her throat from where the knife penetrated it. The sight of Kara covered in so much blood and looking so completely lifeless causes the green-eyed girl to release a sob. Lucy and Alex, having heard the small whimper escape Lena’s lips, both place their arms around the girl's shoulder.</p><p>"It's okay. She's okay now." Lucy whispers in the trembling brunette's ear. Lena just nods and looks back toward the front of the room when Kara’s lawyer speaks up again.</p><p>"I think that you placed a knife at Ms. Danvers’ throat while you robbed her of her belongings. Then you proceeded to bang her head repeatedly against the brick wall so she wouldn't remember or be able to identify you." The lawyer takes a breath. "So I ask again, why did you rob Ms. Danvers the night of August 18, 2016?"</p><p>"Because she was a fucking easy target! The bitch had been crying at the hotel bar all night and I knew she was weak!" The attacker yells and Kara immediately flinches. Her lawyer smiles momentarily, after getting the confession, but it quickly fades when he hears his client's ragged breathing coming from behind him.</p><p>"Thank you. I have no further questions." The lawyer approaches the judge. "Can we take a recess?" He asks and the judge nods.</p><p>"Fifteen minute recess." She bangs the gavel and Lena immediately stands up and makes her way to Kara. She gets to the girl as soon as the criminal is being escorted from the stand.</p><p>"I should've fucking ended your pathetic life when I had the chance." He lunges at the blonde. Lena is quicker though and before he can close any more distance, the girl collides her fist with his face and sends him stumbling back. The man is immediately detained by two more guards and so is Lena. The green-eyed girl has her eyes narrowed on the man in the orange jumpsuit, but all her rage fades away when her eyes fall on a panicking Kara. She immediately struggles against the hands holding her so she can get to her wife, but the guards just tighten their grip on her.</p><p>"Please let me go I have to calm her down." Lena begs and the guards holding her look to the judge. When the judge just nods, they hesitantly release the girl who immediately scrambles to her wife and pulls her into her arms. Lena tucks Kara’s head into her neck and wraps both arms around her trembling body.</p><p>"You're okay. You're safe." Lena whispers into Kara’s ear. "I've got you." She cooes while placing kiss after kiss to her wife's head. </p><p>When the 15 minutes are up, Kara is considerably calmer and Lena is thankful for that. She feels her tense up again when the man in the orange jumpsuit re-enters the court room, three guards around him. He glares at Lena and the girl glares right back. A satisfied smirk makes it’s way across her face when she sees the dried blood around the man's nose and the stitches lining the bridge of it. She breaks her gaze from him when she feels Kara start to shake and she immediately brings her finger up and turns Kara’s chin so she's looking at Lena instead of the man in the orange jumpsuit.</p><p>"Just look at me, okay? Not him." Lena coaxes and Kara just nods. The judge bangs her gavel and Lena hesitantly stands up. When the two break contact, Kara whimpers and Lena’s heart breaks. She kneels down in front of the sitting blonde. "I'll be sitting to your left so if you get overwhelmed or scared just turn to your left and look at me, okay?" Lena grabs her wife’s soft hands and places a kiss on each before placing them gently back on the girl's lap. "See Alex, Nia, and Lucy?" The green-eyed girl points and Kara searches the courtroom for her sister and best friends. Her eyes finally land on all three of them. Lucy and Alex have their heads resting on Nia’s shoulders, their faces tear-stained. "I'll be right there." Kara hears Lena say and she just nods solemnly.</p><p>"Ma'am, I need you to return to your seat please." A guard comes to get the green-eyed girl and she places a kiss on Kara’s tear-stained cheek before retreating back to her seat.</p><p>"How is she?" Alex asks as she slowly raises her head from Nia’s shoulder.</p><p>"She'll be okay I think." Lena offers her a sad smile.<br/>"How are you?" The restaurant owner questions.</p><p>"Not so good." Lena replies almost immediately, her bottom lip quivering.</p><p>"Well at least you got to deck the asshole. That must've felt liberating." Alex examines Lena’s bruising knuckles.</p><p>"That was nothing compared to what I want to do to the bastard." The brunette replies as she clenches her jaw tightly.</p><p>"Court is back in session!" The judge announces. "Will the jury foreperson please stand? Has the jury reached a unanimous verdict?"</p><p>"Yes, your Honor, we have." A man stands up and addresses the judge.</p><p>Kara watches as another man walks over and takes a piece of paper from the jury and gives it to the judge. The judge reads over it and hands it back to the man.</p><p>"The jury finds the defendant guilty of attempted murder, assault and battery, and armed robbery." The clerk announces and Kara sighs in relief.</p><p>"The defendant is hereby sentenced to 45 years in federal prison. Case dismissed." The judge bangs her gavel and the security guards immediately escort the criminal out of the courtroom. The blonde stands up and immediately engulfs her lawyer in a big hug before walking toward her friends. Alex immediately launches herself into Kara’s arms.</p><p>"Are you okay, sis?” Alex mumbles into her sister’s shoulder.</p><p>"The man who ruined my entire life is going to prison for 45 years so yeah that definitely is somewhat relieving." Kara holds her sister tightly until Alex releases her first.</p><p>"He just better be glad I didn't get a hold of his sorry ass." Lucy grumbles and Kara lightly chuckles.</p><p>"Stand down, Luce. I think Lee hit him hard enough for the both of you." The blonde smiles fondly at the green-eyed girl as she hooks her arm with Lucy’s.</p><p>"Let's go home." Lucy smiles.</p><p>"Actually, I was thinking we could go back to my restaurant and I could cook us up some pizzas and potstickers." Alex pipes up.</p><p>"Yes!" Kara eagerly chimes in. "Sorry Luce, but going to eat potstickers is better than going home."</p><p>"I could go for some pizza and potstickers." The brunette shrugs.</p><p>“Same." Lena smiles as she walks up to Kara and absentmindedly interlaces their hands. Her eyes widen when she realizes what she just did, but her fear of rejection dissipates when Kara just looks over at her and smiles.</p><p>"Hey Luce, before we leave, maybe you should go ahead and confess to that time you graffitied the side of the school wall our senior year of high school." Kara smirks and Lucy’s eyes widen before she clamps her hand over her friend’s mouth.</p><p>"Jesus, Kar. I want pizza, not jail time." Lucy looks around to make sure no one heard Kara’s confession.</p><p>"Orange Is the New Black ft. Lucy Lane." Kara states as they all walk out of the courthouse. "Now that's a show I would watch."</p><p>"Well if Ruby Rose will be in jail with me then maybe I should go back in there and turn myself in." Lucy wiggles her eyebrows and Nia scoffs.</p><p>"Why do you need Ruby Rose when you have me?" The brunette girl tosses her hair back.</p><p>"You're right, baby. Ruby doesn't stand a chance at stealing my heart, it already belongs to you." Lucy leans in and captures her fiancé's lips in her own.</p><p>"Slowly losing my appetite here." Kara announces as she lets go of Lena’s hand and back peddles to the car, a smirk evident on her face.</p><p>"So dramatic." Lucy rolls her eyes.</p><p>"You're one to talk, Lane." Lena chimes in, laughing when the girl shoots her a dirty look.</p><p>"Jesus, you are all about defending your girl's honor today, aren't you?" Lucy smirks at the brunette.</p><p>"Always." Lena replies as she watches Kara slide into the car, Alex and Nia following behind her.</p><p>"You got it bad, Luthor." Lucy smirks at the brunette before looking at her fiancé. "But it's okay, I do too."</p>
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<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Chapter 21</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Darling, why are you so nervous?" Lena chuckles at the anxious blonde who is currently smoothing out her dress for the hundredth time.</p><p>"Because they know me, but I don't know them and that makes me nervous. I mean they met me before the accident so what if they hate this me?" Kara wipes her sweaty hands on her red dress.</p><p>"Well at least Lucy’s here to make you look better." Alex shrugs and Lucy scoffs in annoyance.</p><p>"I feel the love, Alex." The brunette crosses her arms and pouts.</p><p>"I just hate disappointing people. I feel like this me will let them down and I hate letting people down." Kara voices her concerns.</p><p>Currently, Kara, Lena, Nia, Lucy, Alex, and Maggie are all headed over to Sam’s house for Thanksgiving and while all the other girls are excited, mainly about the food, Kara can't help but be apprehensive about seeing all of Lena’s friends again. When they pull up to the house, Lena immediately turns off the car and gets out. She meets the nervous blonde in front of the car and puts her hands on the girl’s exposed shoulders.</p><p>"Kara, they'll love you." Lena smiles warmly at the girl. Truth be told, she's flattered that Kara’s nervous about meeting her friends... again. It reminds her of the first time she brought the girl over for game night so she could meet them all.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"Baby, they'll love you." Lena promises as she turns to face the blonde sitting in her passenger's seat.</p><p>Lena and Kara have been dating for awhile now and Lena thought it was about time that Kara met her friends. Plus, they have been bugging her nonstop to bring her around.</p><p>"What if you talked me up and I don't live up to their expectations. Oh god, what if they hate me and then we break up because you don't want to date a girl that your friends hate." The blonde rambles.</p><p>"Darling." The green-eyed girl cups Kara's soft cheeks with her hands. "First, they would never hate you. Second, if they did, which wouldn't happen in a million years, I would never break up with you."</p><p>"Promise?" Kara lifts her pinky in between the two and Lena chuckles momentarily before dropping a hand from the girl's face and interlocking her pinky with the awaiting one. She uses their interlocked fingers to pull the girl closer and capture Kara’s lips in hers. Lena moves her lips slowly and Kara follows suit. The green-eyed girl trails her thumb back and forth across the soft skin under it momentarily before pulling away.</p><p>"No one's opinion of you will ever change my opinion of you." Lena promises, her green eyes oozing love and adoration.</p><p>"Same, babe." Kara breathes out and the brunette takes her hand so she can lead them up the driveway.</p><p>"Ready?" Lena asks as they approach the door.</p><p>"Ready." The blonde nods, her eyes trained on the wooden door before her.<br/>_________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>_________________</p><p>"Promise?" Kara reaches out her pinky and Lena doesn't hesitate to wrap hers around it.</p><p>"Promise." She smiles. "Ready?"</p><p>"Ready." Kara nods and Lena leads all the girls up to Sam’s front door. Before she can knock, the door opens and a young girl launches herself into Lena’s arms.</p><p>“Auntie Lena!” The girl squeals and Lena’s laughter warms Kara’s heart.</p><p>“Hi, Rubes. How’ve you been?” The green-eyed girl ruffles the young girl’s hair.</p><p>“Good, but I’ve missed you guys! Auntie Kara!” The girl launches herself at the blonde and Kara catches her. “My name is Ruby. I know you can’t remember me, but that’s okay. We will make new memories together.” </p><p>Kara feels herself start tearing up as she smiles at the girl. “Hi, Ruby. I love your name and I really look forward to making lots of memories with you.”</p><p>“Ruby, honey, why don’t you invite them in, yeah?” Sam appears in the door and tickles her daughter until she releases Kara. </p><p>“Come in, guys!” Ruby announces and all the girls chuckle as they all file into the house. “Everyone’s out back if you all want to head back there!” </p><p>“I told you guys you didn’t have to bring anything, but thank you.” Sam says as she gives each girl a side hug. Everyone but Kara, Lena, and Sam walk to the backdoor.</p><p>“Hi, friend.” Sam wraps Lena up in a tight hug and they embrace for a few seconds before Sam pulls back. “I’ve missed you, stranger.”</p><p>“I’ve missed you too.” Lena wipes at the moisture that’s gathering under her eyes.</p><p>“And you.” Sam turns to Kara. “Come here.” She reaches out her arms and Kara walks into them. “I’m so happy to see you both together again.”</p><p>“So good to meet you… uh see you again.” Kara corrects herself and Sam just smiles widely at her. There is pity laced in her eyes and Kara wishes that it wasn't directed at her.</p><p>“Well James should be almost finished setting everything up so why don’t we go join everyone in the backyard, yeah?” The mom says and both Lena and Kara nod their heads.</p><p>“Lena Luthor." The green-eyed girl hears her name being called and she doesn't even have to look to know who the voice belongs to. A small smile plays on her lips when she looks to her right and sees Veronica Sinclair walking toward her.</p><p>"Hi, Vero." The brunette meets her halfway and embraces the girl. Kara, wanting to give Lena some time alone to catch up with old friends, makes her way to the table and sits down next to Alex. Sam and Ruby are helping a man, that Kara doesn’t recognize, set the table. After he hands her a paper plate, he extends his hand to her.</p><p>“James Olsen.” He smiles widely at her and she shakes his hand. </p><p>“I would introduce myself, but I’m assuming we’ve already met.” She offers him a smile and he chuckles.</p><p>“We were friends in college. We had a lot of classes together and it was actually you who introduced me to Sam.” He looks over at the woman who is making sure everything is perfect for her guests.</p><p>"Well, it's very nice to see you again, James. I look forward to catching up after lunch." The blonde smiles as she adjusts her glasses on her face.</p><p>“Hi, Kara.” The blonde turns her attention from James to the person who just said her name. Her eyes land on the stranger that she thought was hitting on Lena in New York. “I’m Andrea.”</p><p>Kara vaguely remembers herself drunk rambling about Andrea to Lena and she blushes in embarrassment at the memory. “Nice to see you again, Andrea.” Kara shakes the woman’s hand. “Last time I saw you, I thought you were hitting on Lena.” She chuckles.</p><p>The woman just waves her off. “Please, she’s not my type and I’m not hers. She only likes blondes.” Andrea sends Kara a wink and Kara blushes again. </p><p>Lena takes a seat beside Kara and the blonde watches as the woman that Lena was hugging earlier takes a seat by Andrea across from them. “Kara, this is Veronica.” Lena introduces the two and Kara smiles widely and extends her hand. However, she immediately retracts it when the girl across the table doesn't make a move to shake it. Lena clenches her jaw and gives her friend a death glare, but Veronica just avoids looking at the green-eyed girl.</p><p>“Well she’s real fun at parties.” Maggie mumbles to Alex and Kara tries to hide a smirk while Alex just kicks Maggie under the table.</p><p>The rest of the lunch goes by rather smoothly. Everyone eats until they cannot eat anymore and when it seems as if everyone has thrown in their napkins, Veronica leans over the table and whispers to Lena. "Can we talk to you alone?"</p><p>Before Lena can answer, Sam chimes in. "Rubes, why don't you show the girls your new paintings? She’s been taking art classes on the weekends and she’s getting very good.” Sam gushes and Ruby grabs Kara’s hand and ushers all the other girls to follow her. James pulls out his phone and kisses Sam before mumbling something about a work call. When everyone but Lena, Sam, Andrea, and Veronica are gone, the green-eyed girl starts to speak up.</p><p>"What are you doing?" Veronica asks before Lena can get a word out.</p><p>"Eating?" The green-eyed girl chuckles.</p><p>"No, with Kara. What are you doing?" Veronica crosses her arms.</p><p>The green-eyed girl just sits there, not knowing what to say or where Veronica is going with this.</p><p>"She has a boyfriend Lena and you are just sticking around and being her side piece." Veronica deadpans and Lena’s eyes widen at her words.</p><p>"Vero..." Sam tries to butt in.</p><p>"No, Sam. I want to know why she is letting this girl string her along. You were successful in Venice and you just threw it all away for her." The girl points to the house.</p><p>"Veronica, that's enough." Andrea speaks up, but Veronica keeps ranting.</p><p>"Her head's fucked up, Lena. She can't remember you and she never will so just move on already. You're a catch and you are just throwing your life away to try to win a girl back who is too fucked up in the head to leave her abusive boy-"</p><p>"Veronica, stop!" Sam slams her hands down on the table and then nods her head to the house. All four girls look in the direction of the house and see Alex, Nia, Lucy, Maggie, and Kara standing on the back steps of the house.</p><p>Kara, having heard enough of the conversation, turns around and walks back into the house, Nia and Lucy on her heels. Alex, however, storms over to the table and Maggie follows close behind.</p><p>"Who the fuck do you think you are?" The sister yells and Lena stands up from the table and places a hand on Alex’s chest to stop her from moving forward.</p><p>"I'm being a good friend." Veronica stands up. "Because your sister is fucking up Lena’s life."</p><p>Alex starts to lunge, but Maggie grabs her hand and interlaces their fingers. “She’s not worth it, babe.”</p><p>"I got this, Alex." Lena assures the girl. Alex just nods and lets Maggie lead her back to the house, both girls make sure to shoot Veronica a dirty look before walking away. When the two girls make it into the house, Lena turns around to face her friend.</p><p>"First of all, Veronica, she's not some girl she's my fucking wife. Second of all, Kara told me from the get go that she may never get her memory back and that she wouldn't be mad or blame me if I left." Lena places her palms on the table and leans forward so she is closer to the girl. "I stay because she's my home and I'd rather have her in my life as just a friend than not at all." The green-eyed stares intensely at the girl in front of her. "Third of all, if I ever hear you call my girl damaged or fucked up in the head again, I will not stop Alex from beating your ass. Hell, I won't hesitate to either."</p><p>"You're making a mistake, Lena. Choosing her over your closest friends." Veronica scoffs and shakes her head in disbelief.</p><p>"A close friend would never ask me to choose." Lena replies. "I would tell you to apologize to Kara, but I doubt you will. So instead, why don't you just fucking leave." The brunette points to the door attached to Sam’s backyard fence and Veronica storms out.</p><p>When she leaves, Lena turns to Sam and Andrea. "You guys don't feel that way, do you?"</p><p>"No!" They both say in unison and Lena offers them a sad smile.</p><p>"Good. I love you guys." She breathes out. "Now, I'm going to check on my girl." The green-eyed girl informs them before walking back to the house. As soon as she steps inside, she comes face to face with an angry Nia and Lucy.</p><p>"Please tell us you kicked her ass." Lucy asks.</p><p>“No, but I told her to leave." Lena answers immediately.</p><p>"Good because no one talks about Kara like that." Nia gives Lena’s shoulder a comforting squeeze.</p><p>"Where is she?" Green eyes search the house.</p><p>"Living room." Lucy points in the direction and Lena nods before making her way into the living room. She sees Maggie and Alex sitting with Kara. Maggie seems to be trying to cheer the girl up and Lena hears her favorite laugh so she knows it must be working. When she walks in, the couple stands up from the couch.</p><p>"We will let you two talk alone." Alex says while escorting Maggie out of the area. Lena offers them both a grateful smile as they pass by her. When she sits down on the couch, Kara speaks up.</p><p>"She's right you know." The girl mumbles.</p><p>Lena quickly looks her way, but Kara stays looking at her hands that are neatly folded in her lap.</p><p>"I am damaged and I feel like I'm holding you back." She continues when Lena doesn't say anything.</p><p>"No, she's not right, Kara. Nothing she said was right." Lena informs the blonde, her heart breaking when she sees a tear fall from Kara’s chin to her red dress. "Hey, look at me." She coaxes and Kara slowly raises her head and meets the green-eyed girl's tender gaze. "You are not damaged. You have some internal and external scars, but you aren't damaged."</p><p>Kara nods her head and starts to look back down, but Lena quickly hooks a finger under the girl's chin and forces her to keep eye contact.</p><p>"I love you." Lena finally speaks the three words that she has been itching to say since she was reunited with Kara. "Every single part of you and I don't know how much you heard of the conversation, but you are not stringing me along either. I choose to stay. I do." She puts a finger to her own chest. "I will always choose you and I'd rather have you as a friend than not at all."</p><p>"I so badly want to tell you that I would understand if you left like I did a couple of months ago, but I don't know if I could tell you that because I don't know if I could be okay if you left." Kara admits and Lena’s heart flutters as she processes what Kara just told her. "You've become such a big part of my life, Lena. You've become my best friend and I don't want to lose you, but if staying is only hurting you then I will let you go. If you agree with anything Veronica said then I'll let you go."</p><p>Lena immediately shakes her head. "I don't wanna go." She raises her hand from her own lap and places it on top of Kara’s. "You're my best friend too, darling. You have been for almost 5 years now and I could never willingly walk out of your life." Kara smiles at Lena’s words and the green-eyed girl matches her smile almost immediately. "And I did not agree with a single thing Veronica said. Not one thing. That's why I told her to leave."</p><p>Kara’s eyes widen. "You didn't have to do that for me. I know she's your friend."</p><p>Lena traces circles on the backs of Kara’s hand with her thumb. "I didn't just do it for you, I did it for me too. It hurt me to hear her say those things about you. Plus, if I didn't throw her out, Sam or Andrea would've done it." Lena chuckles lightly. "They love you, by the way. I don't think they ever stopped."</p><p>"Really?" Kara’s eyes brighten.</p><p>"Really." The brunette feels a smile crawl to her lips. "I mean face it, darling, you are pretty lovable."</p><p>The blue-eyed girl laughs and playfully tosses some hair over her right shoulder. "Yeah, I guess I kind of am, huh?"</p><p>"You kinda are." Lena squeezes Kara’s hand before releasing it and standing up from the coach. "Now, let me go see Ruby’s paintings. If I leave before I see them, Ruby will disown me."</p><p>Kara chuckles as she stands up from the sofa. "We wouldn't want that. Lead the way, Luthor." She states before following the brunette to Ruby’s room.</p><p>As Kara walks beside the green-eyed girl, she feels a hand slip into hers. She looks down and smiles at the pale hand that contrasts beautifully with her more tan one.</p><p>All Kara has ever known are touches that leave bruises in their wake.</p><p>She never knew that touches also had the ability to take your breath away while simultaneously setting your whole body on fire.</p><p>Kara had no idea that a touch could actually heal a person... Not until she met Lena.</p>
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<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Chapter 22</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara walks into the art gallery, her eyes immediately scanning the place for a particular art student and a really attractive art teacher. Tonight, Lena’s art students are having an art exhibit to show off their work. Kara didn't tell the green-eyed girl she was coming because she wanted it to be a surprise. She also came because a couple of weeks ago, she reached out to one of Lena’s art students and asked for a favor. Christmas is quickly approaching and so Kara had one of Lena’s art students paint her something for the green-eyed girl. Yesterday, the gift was dropped off at her door so she came here tonight to not only support Lena, but to slip a $100 bill to the gracious student, even though they told her she didn't need to pay.</p><p>After tracking down the student and insisting she take the money, Kara is now searching the crowded, dim lit room for a green-eyed, pale skin brunette. The blonde smiles when she sees the teacher across the room talking about an art piece with a group of people surrounding her and a glass of champagne in her right hand. Deciding not to interrupt her, Kara opts to just walk around the room and admire some of the art. She passes by a piece that captures her attention immediately. It is a piece from the perspective of someone in an airplane. The person's hand is placed on the small airplane window and the way that the hand is placed makes Kara feel like the person wanted to get off the plane for some unknown reason.</p><p>"Absolutely stunning." Kara hears a husky voice say and she immediately turns around.</p><p>"Yeah, it's my favorite one in here. There's a story behind it, I can tell." The blue-eyed girl smiles softly at the art teacher.</p><p>"Oh yeah, the painting is okay too I guess." Lena smirks as she allows her eyes to rake over Kara, drinking in her soft blonde locks, toned legs, and vibrant blue eyes.</p><p>The blonde feels her face heat up under the gaze of the beautiful art teacher. "So who painted-"</p><p>“Mrs. Luthor-Danvers, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I really wanted my parents to meet you." One of Lena’s art students approaches the two girls. The brunette turns to look at Kara and the latter just mouths 'go, it's okay.'</p><p>"I'll be right back." Lena flashes Kara her million dollar smile before following her student to the other side of the room. When the teacher is gone, Kara turns her attention back to the second most beautiful piece of art in the room.</p><p>Lena being the first, of course.</p><p>She studies the painting and notices that the plane is still at the airport because outside the window, you can still see the runway, other planes, and the airport. She squints when she notices a figure to the left of the hand on the window. It is only when the musician leans forward that she sees a brunette figure in the distance, standing behind a glass window in the airport. The figure seems to be a girl who is mimicking the same pose, her palm placed on the glass window as well.</p><p>Kara’s eyes widen in realization and she immediately scans the canvas for a signature that will tell her who the owner of the painting is, even though she's pretty sure she already knows who it is. When she looks at the bottom right corner of the piece, she sees the initials LLD subtly painted there. Her heart speeds up and her mouth goes dry.</p><p>“Lena painted this. I'm the girl on the plane. That's my palm. This is our story.” Kara thinks.</p><p>After running her fingers through her hair, she decides to retreat to the front of the room and pay a visit to the open bar. "Jack and Coke, please." She informs the bartender as she leans her elbows on the rough wooden surface of the bar.</p><p>"Just can't stay away, huh?" The blonde hears a voice and she rolls her eyes before looking over at Lena’s too forward male colleague.</p><p>"Hi." She offers him a tight lipped smile.</p><p>"Hi yourself, beautiful." Jack winks. Luckily, the bartender comes and brings Kara her drink not seconds later. She immediately picks it up and downs half of it in one sip.</p><p>"Thirsty?" Jack kinks an eyebrow before moving closer to the musician and leaning over so his lips are hovering near the blonde’s ear. "I can quench your thirst better than that drink can, I promise you that."</p><p>Kara tenses and her top lip curls up in slight disgust. Before she can reply, she feels an arm snake around her waist and pull her away from the man. Her body collides with the person's and she feels lips hover over her ear once again.</p><p>"Hi, beautiful." She hears a familiar voice whisper. This time, Kara’s body shivers when warm breath hits her ear and her lips form a smile.</p><p>"Hi, Lee." She turns her head to the side and her breath catches in her throat when she sees how close their faces are. She subconsciously licks her lips as her eyes shift from a sea of green to plump red lips.</p><p>Jack clears his throat. "Wow, didn't know you two were-"</p><p>“Yeah, well there's a lot you don't know." Lena retorts as she flickers her eyes over to meet Jack’s.</p><p>"I'll just..." The man points to a random spot in the room and scurries away. When he’s gone, the blonde just chuckles, effectively getting Lena’s attention again.</p><p>"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were jealous, Luthor." Kara quirks an eyebrow and a smile overtakes the green-eyed girl's features.</p><p>"First of all, you don't know me. Second of all, you don't know me." Lena quotes one of her favorite lines from one of her favorite TV shows and Kara starts clapping, a huge grin on her face.</p><p>"Lena Luthor, are you quoting One Tree Hill to me? Because if so, you just became my new favorite person." The musician winks.</p><p>"Yes, I'm quoting One Tree Hill. Peyton Sawyer, to be exact." Lena takes a step closer to the girl. "And so what if I am jealous, darling?"</p><p>"Well I've never really liked jealousy on anyone else, but you wear it well. Kinda like that dress. you've got on." Kara’s eyes scan up and down the green-eyed girl's body, a playful smirk on her face. Lena just stands there, too stunned to move. The blue-eyed girl shakes her head, an amused smile on her lips. Seconds later, she leans in to plant a kiss to the pale cheek in front of her. "C'mon, Picasso, how about you explain some of this art to me, yeah?"</p><p>The art teacher just nods and allows Kara to take her hand and lead her away from the bar area. The rest of the night consists of Lena explaining every piece of art in the room to the blonde.</p><p>Kara, however, just watches in awe, silently wishing someone could explain to her why in the midst of all this art, and surrounded by a room full of color, she cannot see anything but the color green.</p>
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<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Chapter 23</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara spends most of her morning on the phone with Atlantic Records discussing some changes they needed to make to her songs and what artists will be singing them. After playing them some new songs and promising to email the lyrics and a recording over right after, she ends the call. When she walks back into the living room, she continues the task she was working on before she got the call: wrapping Christmas presents. When she finishes wrapping Lena’s present, she inspects her wrapping job before turning to her best friend.</p><p>"You promise my gift isn't stupid, Luce?" Kara chews on her bottom lip nervously as she stares at the gift in her hands.</p><p>"I promise, Kar. Now stop worrying." Lucy pats her friend’s knee. "You could get the girl a garbage bag full of trash and she'd probably treasure it forever. Now I know that you said you wanted to give it to her in private so you better go ahead and go over there before the other girls arrive." The brunette pulls the blonde to her feet and gestures toward the door.</p><p>“Don't be nervous, don't be nervous.” Kara thinks as she tries to no avail to slow down the pace of her heartbeat. </p><p>When she finally gets up the courage, she raps two times on the door. Seconds later, it swings open and blue eyes meet bright green ones.</p><p>“So much for the fucking heart calming exercises.” Kara thinks as her heart starts beating erratically in her chest once again.</p><p>"Hey, darling." Lena smiles as she reaches her hand up to take a curler out of her hair. "I'm sorry if I'm late, I haven't even looked at a clock-"</p><p>"No, you aren't late. You still have about 20 minutes until Alex and Nia arrive." Kara reassures the brunette as she nervously rocks back and forth on her heels. "I just uh wanted to come give you your present early because I wanted it to be more intimate when we exchanged gifts."</p><p>“Intimate? You couldn't think of a better word? What the actual fuck, Kara.” The blonde internally chastises herself. </p><p>Lena just stands in the doorway, a fond smile making it's way to her lips as she watches Kara’s face flush. “So fucking cute.” Lena thinks as she admires the bashful side of her wife.</p><p>"I'd actually love to exchange gifts now." Lena chimes in and puts the blonde out of her misery. "Let me just take these out." She points to the curlers in her hair before retreating to the bathroom. "Make yourself at home!"</p><p>Kara nods and enters the apartment. She sets the present down on the couch so she can pet the dog who is currently napping on the sofa. She pries her eyes away from the sleeping canine when she hears the bedroom door open again. Lena walks out seconds later, her brown locks curled to perfection and a small, wrapped box in her right hand. The green-eyed girl coaxes Kieran to sit on the arm chair and when he does, she plops down on the sofa next to Kara.</p><p>"Hi." Lena breathes out as she stares into vibrant blue eyes.</p><p>"Hi." Kara responds, an amused smile tugging at her lips. "Is that for me?" She wiggles her eyebrows as she stares at the small gift in Lena’s hands.</p><p>"No, Lucy." Lena dead pans. "I kind of forgot to get you something."</p><p>"Well I'm sure Lucy will love it." Kara nods, trying to hide her smile.</p><p>Lena turns the box over in her hands before speaking up again. "Well would you look at that. I made a mistake. This little thing actually is for you." She beams. "See, it has your name on it." The brunette points to the name tag that reads 'Kara.' Lena places the box in Kara’s lap and the blonde’s eyes brighten. She immediately starts unwrapping the gift, and once all the paper is removed, she holds a light blue box in her hands. She knows the only jewelry that comes in these little blue boxes is jewelry from Tiffany &amp; Co and everything made by them is pricey. Her eyes find green ones and she stares at Lena quizzically. The latter just nods, silently encouraging her to go on and open it.</p><p>Kara carefully opens the box and sucks in a quick breath when her eyes land on a gold necklace. The pendant is a gold key with a daisy design on it and diamond accents.</p><p>"Because you hold the key to my heart, Kara." Lena whispers and Kara shoots her head up again to meet green eyes. “And I know daisies are your favorite flower."</p><p>Kara feels tears well up in her eyes as she stares at the incredibly thoughtful gift. She rubs her fingers over the small flower. "It's beautiful, Lee." Kara immediately wipes away a stray tear that has fallen to her cheek.</p><p>"It's not much..." Lena starts and Kara just shakes her head.</p><p>"You're wrong." She looks up and moves her left hand to rest on top of both of Lena’s that are currently folded in her lap. "It's everything." She admits and Lena looks down so she can hide the blush that is quickly rising to her cheeks. Kara leans in and places a kiss to one of the ivory cheeks. When she pulls back, she immediately studies the beautiful necklace again. "Now I'm embarrassed to give you my gift."</p><p>Lena shakes her head. "Don't be, I'll love it."</p><p>Kara nods and grabs the large present and sets it on Lena’s lap. The green-eyed girl immediately starts tearing off the paper that covers the gift and when she gets it all off, her eyes light up as she holds the canvas in her hands. Her smile widens when her eyes scan the canvas. It's a painting of Lena, Kara, and Kieran. Lucy gave Kara the picture after she confessed that she took it the night Kara found Kieran on the beach. The blonde is holding the puppy in her arms and Lena is sitting beside her, petting the little guy and looking fondly at Kara.</p><p>"How-" Lena opens her mouth and then closes it back.</p><p>"I stalked one of your students and they agreed to paint it for me." Kara admits and Lena just chuckles.</p><p>"It's perfect, Kara." Lena’s eyes scan the painting, taking in every little detail of it and feeling proud that one of her students painted such a beautiful piece.</p><p>"Well that's not all." Kara smirks while pulling out an envelope from her jacket pocket.</p><p>"Kara." Lena groans. "This is more than enough."</p><p>"I mean, I can resale the concert tickets if you don't-"</p><p>"Now lets not be irrational." Lena takes the envelope that Kara is holding out and the blue-eyed girl just smirks.</p><p>"Thought so." Kara winks and Lena just shoots her a playful glare as she tears open the envelope. When two concert tickets fall on her lap, she picks them up. Her eyes read the name on the tickets and they widen.</p><p>"Freya Ridings? Oh my god.” She looks up and Kara nods, a huge smile on her face.</p><p>“You were singing her that day when you were walking out of your apartment and I was headed to work. She announced her tour the other day and I saw she was coming close to here so I snagged us two tickets.” The blonde offers her a soft smile.</p><p>The green-eyed girl sets the tickets aside and launches herself at the blonde.</p><p>"I hope this means you love the presents." Kara bites her lip as she wraps her arms around the green-eyed girl. </p><p>"Of course I do!" The brunette pulls back from the hug and reaches down and picks up the tickets that she set aside a second ago.</p><p>"Since there are two, does that mean I get a plus one?" Lena asks.</p><p>"Well a concert wouldn't be fun to go to alone now would it?" The blonde raises an eyebrow and Lena shakes her head. </p><p>Before she can speak up and ask Kara to be her plus one, someone starts banging on the door.</p><p>"Ladies! It's time to eat!" They hear Lucy yell and both girls roll their eyes. Lena retreats to her room to grab her gifts for the girls before following Kara into her and Lucy’s apartment.</p><p>After they all eat and exchange gifts, Nia, Alex, Kara, and Maggie settle on the couch to watch Christmas movies. Lucy, however, grabs Lena and jerks her into the kitchen.</p><p>"Lucy what the-" Lena starts, but shuts her mouth when a long circular tube is placed in her hands. She looks at it momentarily before looking up at Lucy. "I thought you said my gift was on back order?"</p><p>"After you open it, you'll see why I said that." Lucy gestures toward the package and Lena gives in and opens it. She pulls a cap off the end of it and reaches down into the tube to retrieve the rolled up poster. She unrolls it and holds it out in front of her. A huge grin immediately makes it's way across her face.</p><p>"Well well, you kept your promise." She glances at Lucy.</p><p>"I always do." Lucy smirks. "Told you I'd blow it up into a poster for you. I did decide to add a couple of more pictures to it though."</p><p>Lena smiles as she studies the poster. It's a collage of pictures of her and Kara. She sees the one of the two of them cuddled up on the air-mattress the night of the sleepover and the one of her kissing Kara’s head while she was asleep on her shoulder on the plane to LA.</p><p>"I know, I know. I should be a professional photographer." Lucy tosses her hair over her shoulder and Lena finds herself nodding in agreement. She must admit that these pictures are quite adorable.</p><p>“Alright, roll that sucker back up and let’s go back in there with our girls so I can dangle mistletoe over yours and Kara’s heads.” Lucy gestures toward the living room.</p><p>Lena just laughs it off, but there's a part of her hoping that Lucy does hold mistletoe over their heads because even though she's gotten some amazing presents today, a kiss from Kara is all that she really wants for Christmas this year.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>i think you guys will REALLY like chapter 24 (next chapter)... just throwing that out there...</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0024"><h2>24. Chapter 24</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara downs another glass of champagne as she watches Lena talk with some friends.</p><p>Kara looks the green-eyed girl up and down. She can’t get over how good she looks tonight. She starts at the girl's black heels and then admires how great her ivory legs look in contrast to the sparkly black dress she is wearing. Her brown locks are pulled back in a messy ponytail with little strands of hair framing her face. Kara’s eyes settle on her red stained lips and the blonde finds herself smiling as she watches Lena laugh at something Sam says. When she realizes she's been staring for far too long, she immediately tears her eyes away from Lena and grabs another glass of champagne from the alcohol table. Once she has another glass, she takes a seat on the couch. </p><p>It's New Years Eve and Alex decided to throw a party at her place. She told everyone to invite whoever they wanted so each girl invited a few of their friends to attend. Alex did most of the cooking for the event so the food consists of potstickers, pizza, and a few other crowd favorites from her restaurant’s menu. Oh, and a lot of alcohol. </p><p>"I see you over here eye fucking green eyes." Lucy sneaks up next to her best friend and sits down. She takes the glass of champagne from her hand to take a swig of it. "She's yours, she always has been... you just gotta claim her."</p><p>"I hate my freaking heart for beating so fast when I'm around her and the butterflies. Oh, don't even get me started on how they literally invade my stomach anytime Lena is within 10 feet of me." Kara huffs as she runs a hand through her messy curls.</p><p>"Sounds like you've made your choice." Lucy informs the confused girl.</p><p>"I'm scared of how she makes me feel. She looks at me like I'm her everything and I'm terrified that she will get into a relationship with me and realize that I'm nothing special. I'm terrified that she'll get into a relationship with me and I'll let her down because I'm not the same girl she fell in love with.” Kara confesses.</p><p>"You are the same girl, Kar." Lucy places her arm around the blonde’s shoulders. "You are just a little more guarded, that's all."</p><p>"Thanks for the support, Luce." Kara leans her head on Lucy’s shoulder. "I couldn't live without you."</p><p>"Damn right you couldn't." Lucy kisses her on the head and Kara just rolls her eyes.</p><p>"Kara, if you're lonely, we can just make this New Years kiss a three way." Nia suggests as she approaches the two girls.</p><p>Kara just lifts her head from Lucy’s shoulder and scrunches up her nose in disgust."I love you two, but no thanks."</p><p>“You sure, Kar? I'm a really good kisser." Lucy wiggles her eyebrows. "Right, baby?" The brunette turns to look at her fiancé.</p><p>"Damn right you are." Nia winks at her.</p><p>"Okay, the clock strikes midnight in like 10 minutes and I really don't wanna be around when you two devour each other." Kara stands up and walks back to the alcohol table since Lucy stole her glass. Alex and Maggie are filling up gasses and she walks over and grabs another one. </p><p>“So, Lena looks hella good tonight.” Maggie smiles mischievously and Kara blushes.</p><p>“She always does.” The blonde replies and her sister and Maggie just smile at her knowingly. </p><p>“So I’ll be seeing you two together at midnight, right?” Alex smirks at her sister and Kara takes a sip of her drink when she feels her cheeks starting to heat up. </p><p>“Can’t wait to see the fireworks.” Maggie chimes in and Kara tilts her head in confusion. </p><p>“You ordered fireworks, Alex? Should we go outside at midnight then?” The blonde points to the door. Alex and Maggie share a look before they both burst out laughing.</p><p>“No, you dummy. The fireworks that will go off when you two finally…” Maggie puckers her lips and taps them and Kara downs her drink before grabbing another from the table.</p><p>“I’ll see you two after midnight, yeah?” Kara chuckles nervously before making her way to the nearest bathroom. She sets the drink down on the side of the sink and checks herself in the mirror.</p><p>She runs her fingers through her hair a few times and smiles when her eyes fall to her chest area and she sees the key pendant that Lena gifted her hanging from her neck. She brings her right hand up and rubs her thumb across it momentarily before dropping her hand and glancing at her reflection one last time.</p><p>Kara starts to hear the countdown from 60 seconds and her hands start to shake.</p><p>“It's now or never, Kara. This is what you want. This is what you've always wanted, even if you forgot momentarily.” The blonde whispers to herself.</p><p>"30!" She hears everyone chant and her whole body starts to tremble. Once she does this, she can't undo it and that terrifies her.</p><p>"20!" The party-goers chant and she quickly takes a swig of her champagne before setting it back on the sink. She takes a deep breath and then opens the bathroom door.</p><p>As soon as she walks back into the living room area, her eyes scan the crowd of people.</p><p>"10!" The crowd chants just as her eyes lock with piercing green ones across the room. Lena offers her a small wave as she makes her way over to the musician.</p><p>"5!" Kara takes another step, effectively closing the large gap between the two of them.</p><p>"4!" Lena squeezes through the crowd to get to her wife.</p><p>"3!" </p><p>"I was looking everywhere for you." Lena says once Kara is within earshot.</p><p>"2!"</p><p>Kara just nods as she quickly closes the gap between the two of them. </p><p>"Happy New Year!" The crowd shouts just as Kara's right hand finds the back of Lena’s neck and she pulls the girl into a searing kiss. When red lips touch pink ones, the whole world around them fades away. Neither girl can hear a thing over the loud thumping in their chests.</p><p>Lena is baffled to say the least and she wants to kiss back, but she tastes the champagne on Kara’s tongue and Lena knows that the girl has a habit of only kissing Lena when she's drunk. It takes every ounce of strength in her, but she places her hands on Kara’s shoulders and lightly pushes her back. She's instantly met with dilated blue eyes and fuck has she missed that sight.</p><p>"Darling, how much have you had to drink?" The green-eyed girl wants to be sure she wouldn't be taking advantage of the girl.</p><p>"Lena, I'm not drunk. I've had like two glasses of champagne." The blonde admits and Lena can see that she's telling the truth. The green-eyed girl's eyes go wide and she just stands there trying to process what the blonde just said. Lena’s mind is reeling because Kara just kissed her and she’s sober.</p><p>"I'm sorry I caught you off guard. I probably shouldn't have just sprung that on you. I'll just uh go now." Kara says, her pride a little hurt after Lena abruptly ended their kiss. Kara tries to search Lena’s eyes for any sign that she felt something in the kiss, but the girl just seems to be completely zoned out. The musician spins on her heels and starts walking in the opposite direction. As soon as she goes to take a second step, she feels a warm hand slide into her own and next thing she knows, she’s being spun around to face Lena again.</p><p>Lena steps forward slowly and brings her trembling hands up to settle on Kara’s cheeks. She leans in slowly and brushes their noses together. When Kara feels Lena’s warm breath hit her lips, she can't stop herself from closing the gap between the two of them again and attaching her lips to soft red ones.</p><p>Kara prays that Lena won’t pull away again as she slowly starts to move her lips against the green-eyed girl’s. All her doubts fade away when she feels Lena’s lips move gently against her own. After a few soft kisses, Kara pulls away slowly and leans her forehead against Lena's. When the blonde feels the brunette's warm breath hit her lips, chills spread over every inch of her body. </p><p>"Hi." She whispers and Lena grins.</p><p>"Hi." The green-eyed girl responds as she delicately runs her thumb over Kara’s bottom lip. Lena shifts her gaze from blue eyes to pink lips. She sticks her tongue out to wet her lips before sliding her hand to the back of Kara’s neck and bringing their lips together again in a heated kiss.</p><p>Butterflies erupt in Lena’s stomach and she warmly greets them, having not properly felt the little creatures for almost a year. Lena feels a tear slip out of the corner of her right eye and she momentarily smiles into the kiss and Kara does the same. Lena drops her hands from Kara’s face and places them on the girl's hips so she can bring their bodies closer together. The blonde folds her arms around Lena’s neck and swipes her tongue across her bottom lip. Lena starts to open her mouth wider to allow the girl access, but she’s startled by a popping noise. She pulls away from the kiss and looks up to see confetti falling down around them.</p><p>“It’s about time!” Alex whistles as she tosses aside the confetti canon she was holding. </p><p>“Way to go, little Danvers!” Maggie claps and all of their friends join in. Kara hides her head in Lena’s neck bashfully while the green-eyed girl just laughs and playfully shoots everyone a bird. </p><p>“Wanna go somewhere quieter, darling?” Lena whispers into the blonde’s ear. When Kara just nods, Lena takes her hand and leads her away from the crowd. </p><p>Kara absentmindedly rubs her thumb over the back of Lena’s hand as the brunette leads them away from the wonderful chaos that is the New Years party. The blonde smiles when Lena gives her hand a reassuring squeeze. She’d follow the green-eyed girl anywhere.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0025"><h2>25. Chapter 25</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lena leads them both to Alex’s guest bedroom and as soon as the door to the room is closed, Kara leans forward and takes Lena’s lips in her own. She kisses her with a sense of urgency and Lena doesn't hesitate to kiss her back. The green-eyed girl brings her right hand up and strokes Kara’s soft cheek with her thumb. The latter darts her tongue into Lena’s mouth causing both girls to moan when their tongues collide.</p><p>Lena walks forward, forcing Kara to step back until the back of her knees hit the edge of the bed. Kara slowly sits down on the bed and lays back, her hand on the back of Lena’s neck keeping their lips attached. Lena loops one arm around Kara’s waist and picks her up so she can scoot them both to the top of the bed. The blue-eyed girl's fingers play with Lena’s zipper on the back of her dress momentarily and she breaks their kiss so she can look into green eyes. When blue eyes meet almost black ones, Kara knows Lena wants this just as much.</p><p>The brunette quickly nods her head in confirmation before reattaching their lips again. Kara slowly unzips the girl's dress and when the zipper reaches the end of it's track, Lena quickly shimmies out of it. Kara’s stomach does somersaults when she takes in Lena’s almost naked body and bites her lips as her eyes fall on the girl's breasts that are spilling out of her lacy bra. Her eyes lift up to find Lena’s again and they are filled with so much love and lust. The green-eyed girl wastes no time in getting her wife out of her skirt and top and when she finally does, her mouth waters when she sees Kara laying beneath her in a red lacy bra and matching underwear.</p><p>"You're so fucking beautiful." Lena breathes out before attaching her lips to Kara’s neck and placing wet kisses there. The blonde squirms underneath Lena when she sucks on her pulse point. After peppering her neck with a slobbery kisses and a few bites here and there, she moves down and unhooks Kara’s bra. As soon as the piece of fabric is out of the way, Lena wastes no time in worshipping the blonde’s chest area. </p><p>Lena spends the next few hours reacquainting herself with Kara’s body, meanwhile Kara spends the next few hours getting to know Lena’s.</p><p>"That was..." Lena breathes out as she rolls off of Kara and onto her back.</p><p>"Yeah." Kara replies. They both lay there for a couple of minutes, trying to process what just happened while simultaneously trying to calm their breathing. </p><p>"So that's what good sex feels like, huh?” Kara murmurs.</p><p>Lena just chuckles and opens her arms. Kara crawls into them and snuggles into her. When the green-eyed girl feels wet tears hit her skin, she looks down to see that Kara is silently crying.</p><p>"Darling, what's wrong?" Lena gently tilts her chin upward so she can lock eyes with her favorite pair of blue ones.</p><p>"Sorry, it's stupid. It's just no one has ever touched me like that. Well I mean you probably did because we were married, but I don't remember it." Kara admits.</p><p>"William-" Lena starts.</p><p>"Only thought about pleasuring himself. We only had sex when he wanted to and it only lasted as long as it took for him to get off. I can't remember the last time someone has touched me with the intention of just wanting me to feel pleasure." Kara admits and Lena’s heart breaks at the confession. She tightens her grip on the girl in her arms. "Thank you, Lena." The blonde smiles up at Lena before learning in and pressing a soft kiss to her lips. The green-eyed girl smiles into the kiss and Kara does the same. </p><p>“Well that was a great way to start off the new year, huh?” Kara whispers as her fingers trace patterns on Lena’s bare skin. </p><p>“This is going to be a good year. I can feel it.” Lena plants a gentle kiss on the blonde’s forehead</p><p>Lena is broken from her thoughts when Kara slowly sits up and slides off the bed.</p><p>"Leaving so soon, Danvers?" Lena props up on her elbows, a smirk on her face.</p><p>"Just going to shower." The blonde smiles before gathering her clothes from the floor and turning around to enter the bathroom. Lena allows her eyes to trail down to her wife's backside as she walks to the bathroom in the nude. The green-eyed girl thrashes around excitedly on the bed as soon as she hears the shower start running. Best New Years ever.</p><p>Kara takes a long, hot shower and when she gets out, she sees that she has a missed call and voicemail from an unknown number. She presses play and brings the phone to her ear.</p><p>“Paid you a little visit tonight, but you weren’t at home. I’m assuming you were with Lena. Enjoy the time you have left with her, but just know if you continue to see her, I'm going to have to give her a taste of what I used to give you. I’ve given you your space, but no more. We both know you know exactly what I'm capable of, baby. So be a good little bitch and come back home to me.”</p><p>Kara’s body goes rigid and she throws the phone on the counter. She hears a knock at the bathroom door and she jumps a bit. </p><p>“Darling, can you come out? Your sister needs to speak with us out in the living room.” She hears Lena’s voice through the door and calms down a bit. She quickly puts on the clothes she was wearing just a few hours ago and combs through her damp hair. </p><p>When she opens the door, Lena is sitting on the bed. The green-eyed girl stands up when she hears the door open and offers the blonde her hand. Kara takes it and the brunette gives her hand a gentle squeeze before leading them back out into the living room. The place is a mess from the night before and she sees that Alex is cleaning, meanwhile Maggie is talking on the phone. </p><p>“What’s up?” She asks while putting her damp hair into a messy bun.</p><p>“Lucy just called. Her and Nia just arrived to yours and Lucy’s apartment and it was broken into.” Alex sighs. “She said that nothing was stolen, but she noticed pictures were cut up and stuff.”</p><p>“I need to go.” Kara turns to look at Lena desperately and the green-eyed girl just places a quick kiss to the back of her hand.</p><p>“I’ll drive.” Lena says before walking back to the kitchen and retrieving her purse and jacket. Alex and Kara wait at the door while Maggie finishes up her phone conversation. </p><p>“We will meet you two there. I’ll need to drive so I can go into work after I see the apartment.” Maggie tucks her phone into her back pocket before grabbing Alex’s hand and leading them out the door.</p><p>The drive over is quick and Kara is grateful for that because she wants to get to the apartment so she can see the damage for herself. Her body shakes with nerves and she wraps Lena’s jacket more tightly around herself. The warmth and the smell of Lena are calming. As soon as the green-eyed girl puts the car in park, Kara slides out and jogs up to her apartment. She opens the door and her stomach drops. The place is in complete disarray. Every thing of value seems to still be there, but all the picture frames were smashed so the floor is littered with broken glass and tattered memories. Nia is silently sweeping glass into a dustpan and Lucy is trying to unsuccessfully piece back together some of their pictures. She carefully steps over the shards of glass and makes her way to her bedroom. When she opens the door and turns on the light, her stomach sinks. </p><p>There’s a message on the wall above her bed. It’s written in red paint… or so she hopes it’s red paint.</p><p>It reads “you’re mine” and Kara knows immediately that this isn’t a random break in. It was premeditated. William did this.</p><p>“It was him, wasn’t it?” Lena walks up behind Kara and surveys the room. Kara just nods and Lena’s blood boils. The blonde walks to her bed and takes a seat on the edge of it. Seconds later, Alex and Maggie join them in the room.</p><p>“It was William. He did this.” Kara speaks up before either of them can get a word out.</p><p>“Kara, do you have anything else that could link him to this?” Maggie speaks up and Kara just nods and pulls her phone from her jacket pocket. She navigates to her voicemails and puts it on speaker. When his angry voice fills the room, Lena makes her way over to the bed and sits down next to Kara. She wraps a protective arm around her waist and the blonde just leans her head on the brunette’s shoulder. Lena is seeing nothing but red once the voicemail ends and she looks over to Alex and sees that she seems to be just as angry. </p><p>“I’m going to arrest that son of a bitch.” Maggie walks out of the room and Alex follows her. </p><p>“What do you need, darling?” Lena asks while placing a lingering kiss to the blonde’s head.</p><p>“Just hold me, please.” Kara whispers and Lena scoots them to the top of the bed so they can lay down. She positions Kara so she’s laying on her chest and Lena has an arm wrapped around her back. One of Kara’s hands is resting on the green-eyed girl’s sternum and Lena rests her hand on top of it. The musician interlaces their fingers and gives the pale hand a gentle squeeze. </p><p>About an hour later, Alex and Maggie return and Kara raises her head up from where it was laying on Lena’s chest. </p><p>“He wasn’t at his house, but I have issued a warrant for his arrest and I’ve let all of NCPD know what’s going on so everyone’s on the lookout.” The detective runs a hand through her dark hair. “I already told Lucy this, but I don’t think either of you should be staying here right now. Lena, you either.”</p><p>“Kara, don’t be mad, but I called mom and dad and we all think it’s best if you go stay in Midvale until he’s arrested.” Alex speaks up and Kara, not feeling like fighting her on this, just nods her head.</p><p>“I think that’s best. I know what he’s capable of.” The blonde sighs dejectedly.</p><p>“I’ll make some calls and see if my old apartment from college is still available.” Lena speaks up and Kara looks at her with sad eyes.</p><p>“I’ll go call mom and dad and let them know you’re coming.” Alex mumbles before exiting the bedroom so she can give them some time alone.</p><p>“I would invite you to come to Midvale, but I know you have work.” The blonde furrows her eyebrows and Lena leans up and kisses her frown away.</p><p>“We will FaceTime and I’ll come and visit if you want. They’ll catch him soon. You’ll be back here before you know it.” She whispers after pulling away from the kiss.</p><p>“Promise?” Blue eyes stare hopefully into green eyes.</p><p>“I promise, darling.”</p>
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<a name="section0026"><h2>26. Chapter 26</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara spends her first week in Midvale sulking because she misses a certain green-eyed girl. Even though they have FaceTimed every single day since she left, Kara still misses her like crazy. The first couple of days, she avoided Eliza and Jeremiah like the plague, but after the third day, she just didn’t have it in her to do it anymore. They were slowly chipping away at her walls and she was letting them. She’ll never forget what they did to her and Lena, but she’s starting to forgive them for it. Life’s too short to hold grudges. </p><p>It's currently Saturday now and Kara decides to spend most of her day walking around the downtown area. Naturally, she ends up at one of her favorite bookstores in town. Since she will be spending a lot of her time at the beach, she wants a book that she can read while tanning. She thumbs through the young adult section first then the mystery and when she comes up empty handed after both, she heads to the classic book section. She runs her fingers along the spines of the books and only stops when her eyes see a familiar one. She pulls it out and holds it in her hands.</p><p>To Kill a Mockingbird</p><p>It's her all time favorite book and she used to read it from cover to cover once every year.</p><p>"Good choice." She hears someone say and she looks over at the old lady beside her. She offers her a smile.</p><p>"Yeah, it's my favorite."</p><p>As soon as the words fall off her tongue, she remembers a time in her past that she thought was lost to her forever.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>Kara sits down in a desk at the back of the classroom and pulls out a book from her backpack. This is her first day of classes in Venice for her study abroad program and naturally she is the first one in the class. She wanted to make sure she was on time.</p><p>She opens up her book and starts reading. A couple of minutes later, the door to the classroom opens and she hears people start to file in, but she doesn't bother looking up from her book.</p><p>"Good choice." She hears a raspy voice say and she finally looks up from the book and looks to her right. Her eyes meet a pair of emerald eyes and her breath catches in her throat. Never in her life has she seen prettier eyes and she can't help herself from getting completely and utterly lost in them. Kara drops her gaze from the emerald eyes down to plump red lips and when she sees them form a smirk, she clears her throat and returns her attention back to her book.</p><p>"Yeah, it's my favorite." Kara smiles shyly, her face flushing a bit under the green-eyed girl's gaze.</p><p>"I'm Lena." The girl pipes up and when Kara sees a hand extend to her out of the corner of her eye, she shifts her book so she's holding it in her left hand and reaches her right one out to shake the pale one that belongs to the beautiful stranger. When their hands touch, Kara feels her whole body tingle.</p><p>"Kara." She exchanges names with the girl and watches as the dark-haired girl's lips form a smile.</p><p>"Nice to meet you, Kara." The girl beams and a smile graces Kara’s features because her name sounds so good rolling off of the beautiful stranger’s tongue.</p><p>"Nice to meet you too, Lena." Kara smiles warmly at her and before either of them can say anything else, the teacher enters the room and class starts. Throughout the class, Kara feels a pair of green eyes staring at her and every time she looks over, blue eyes lock with emerald ones. Surprisingly, Lena doesn't look away, but instead a small, tender smile just makes it's way to her lips, which causes Kara’s cheeks to turn pink. Both girls spend the rest of the class stealing glances at the other and smiling like idiots when their eyes lock.</p><p>After class, Kara bids Lena a goodbye before packing up and heading out of the brick building. Before she can take a step out the door, she hears her name being called. When she turns around, she sees the green-eyed girl jogging toward her.</p><p>"I was wondering if maybe you wanted to explore the city with me? I was going to check out some art galleries and grab a bite to eat before we have to be back at the dorms for lights out." Lena rubs the back of her neck, her beautiful eyes gazing at Kara hopefully.</p><p>The blue-eyed girl quirks the right side of her mouth up in fondness. "I'd love to." Her smile widens when Lena breathes out a sigh of relief. "I guess I'll allow you to be my tour guide around the city." Kara scrunches up her nose and hugs her books closer to her chest.</p><p>"Yeah?" Lena smiles widely and Kara doesn't understand how one little smile can cause a million butterflies to erupt in her stomach.</p><p>"Yeah." She bites her lip and looks into a pair of green eyes that she knows will take up most of her thoughts from here on out.<br/>_________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>_________________</p><p>Kara is broken from her thoughts when she feels someone shake her slightly. She refocuses her eyes and looks up from the book in her hands to a pair of concerned brown eyes.</p><p>"Sweetie, are you okay?" The lady asks and Kara just nods. "Because you're crying."</p><p>The blonde immediately reaches her hand up to her face and feels wetness against her fingertips. She must have been crying at the memory.</p><p>The memory! She remembered! She remembered Lena!</p><p>"I'm okay, thank you." Kara quickly returns the book to the shelf and scurries outside. Once outside, she whips out her phone and dials a number. Her heart beats erratically in her chest as she awaits for the answer.</p><p>"Kar?" She hears a familiar voice.</p><p>"Hi, Luce." The blonde breathes out.</p><p>"Are you okay?" Lucy asks hesitantly.</p><p>“Yeah, how is she? Like we've spoken and she says she's fine, but how is she really?" Kara chews on her lower lip.</p><p>“She’s pretty good. She just misses you a whole lot.” Lucy informs her and Kara sighs.</p><p>“I miss her too. I miss you all so much.” Kara picks at a string on her shirt. “Did you guys help her get moved in to her new apartment? She mentioned yesterday that you, Nia, Alex, and Maggie offered to help her. Thank you guys for doing that.”</p><p>“Oh, it was no problem. We got her all moved in and she seems to be settling in nicely. She’s hanging with us tonight too. Nia and I asked her to go to the movies and luckily she said yes so maybe that’ll help get her mind off of things.” The brunette responds. </p><p>“I miss movie nights and game nights. Ugh, I feel like I’m missing out on so much.” Kara kicks some rocks across the pavement. “Well regardless of if he’s caught or not, I will be home for your wedding, Luce. Wouldn’t miss it for the world.” Kara assures her best friend.</p><p>"Kara that is in a month! I better be seeing you before then.” Lucy groans. “If the police don’t find his ass soon I’ll go find him and drag him to the station myself.”</p><p>“I don’t doubt that for a second. Take care of her for me, yeah? He can hurt me all he wants, but I cannot let him hurt the woman I love.” Kara’s blood boils at the thought of William laying a hand on Lena.</p><p>"Kar..." Lucy whispers. "Did you just..."</p><p>"Hmm?" The blonde hums into the receiver.</p><p>"You called Lena the woman you love." Lucy points out and Kara widens her eyes.</p><p>“Well I think I hear Eliza calling for me. I better go see what she wants. Love you, Luce.” Kara mumbles before ending the call and shoving her phone into her purse. She leans back up against the brick building and slides down it until her butt touches warm cement.</p><p>"I remembered. I really remembered." Kara breathes out.</p><p>She looks up at the sun, loving the way it feels on her face. Her right hand absentmindedly finds the key pendant that is hanging around her neck and a small smiles makes it's way across her features. Lena told her that she holds the key to her heart and she wholeheartedly believed her when she said it. No, she didn’t really need an old memory to show her that Lena holds the key to her heart too, she already knew that even before she remembered the first time she met the brunette. However, it’s nice to be able to remember some of their life together. Kara got to meet Lena for the first time twice in a lifetime… and the green-eyed girl successfully made Kara fall in love with her twice in a lifetime. She really can’t wait to fall in love with her a little more each day.</p><p>Kara has been the protagonist in two epic love stories and it just so happens that her love interest in both stories is the same green-eyed girl.</p>
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<a name="section0027"><h2>27. Chapter 27</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lena takes another swing at her punching bag. She’s really glad she had one installed in the gym in her apartment. Boxing has always been stress relieving for her. Before she can take another swing, she hears a knock at her door.</p><p>“It’s open!” The brunette yells as her fists collide with the red bag.</p><p>A few seconds later, Alex appears in her gym. </p><p>“Solid punch.” The restaurant owner says as she holds the bag steady for the brunette.</p><p>“Thanks.” Lena momentarily stops her attack on the punching bag and offers the girl a small smile. “Any updates?”</p><p>Alex sighs and Lena’s shoulders deflate. “Maggie called this morning and said that the NCPD thinks he left town and is hiding out with friends or family outside the city. She said they’ve searched everywhere for him and have patrolled his house since the break-in, but there’s been no sign of him.”</p><p>“He’s such a fucking coward.” Lena grits her teeth and slides the gloves from her hands. She sits down on a bench and takes a swig of water.</p><p>“I actually came here to see if you wanted to go to Midvale with me today?” Alex takes a seat on the bench by Lena.</p><p>“Shit, I would, but I told Sam and James I’d watch Ruby tonight while they have a date night out of town.” The green-eyed girl looks apologetically at her sister-in-law.</p><p>“Maybe another weekend then. Have you talked with her?” Alex asks curiously.</p><p>“Every day. We FaceTime every day, but it’s not the same. I just want to be able to hold her again.”</p><p>Alex nods her head. “I get that. I have faith that it won’t be too much longer until she gets to come home.” The restaurant owner stands up from the bench. “Just wanted to drop by and see how you were doing. Kara said she would kick my ass if I didn't check in on you.”</p><p>Lena raises one of her perfectly sculpted eyebrows. “Kara actually said the word ass?”</p><p>“Well she said she would kick my butt if I didn’t check in on you.” Alex chuckles and Lena joins in on the laughter.</p><p>“That sounds more like my Kara.” The green-eyed girl smiles fondly as she thinks of her wife. “Thank you for coming over, Alex.” Lena stands up from the bench and wraps her wife’s sister in a hug.</p><p>“Ew you're all sweaty, Luthor.” Alex fakes gagging, but wraps her arms around the brunette nonetheless. Lena releases her from the hug and swats her arm playfully. Alex retreats to the door while laughing. “Call me if you need anything, Lena.”</p><p>“I will. You do the same, Alex.” The brunette offers her a genuine smile and wave. When the door closes, Lena walks back into her gym and grabs her phone. She navigates to her recent messages and shoots Kara a quick one. She knows the girl should be waking up around now and Lena always makes sure that the blonde wakes up to a sweet good morning text. </p><p>Like every other morning since she left National City, Kara wakes up missing a certain green-eyed girl. She grabs her phone and smiles widely when she sees that she has a text from her favorite brunette. </p><p>It reads, “Good morning, beautiful. I hope you have an amazing day. I woke up again today missing you like crazy. FaceTime later?”</p><p>Kara responds thoughtfully before rolling out of bed and throwing on some shorts, a tank top, and her running shoes. She doesn’t do it a whole lot, but running has always been therapeutic to her. As soon as she’s out her front door, she starts jogging.</p><p>All is going well with the run until "Somebody Else" by The 1975 starts playing. As soon as the music floods her ears, memories that were once lost to her come flooding back into her thoughts again.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"So now can you tell me where we are going?"</p><p>"Nope." Lena looks over at the blonde who is currently sitting beside her in the back of a taxi.</p><p>After exploring Venice together, Lena and Kara started hanging out and talking more. Lena finally got up enough courage after their third time hanging out to ask the blonde out on a date. Luckily, she said yes and now here they are, in a taxi on their way to a location only one of them knows about.</p><p>"Pleaseeee." Kara juts out her bottom lip and bats her eyelashes at the other girl.</p><p>Lena’s heart does somersaults, something that's been happening a whole lot since she's been spending time with a certain blue-eyed girl.</p><p>"Only for you." Lena winks at the girl before fishing out her phone from her purse. "Here's your hint." She presses play and 'Somebody Else' by The 1975 starts playing. Kara just listens, her eyebrows knitted together in concentration.</p><p>"Either you are suggesting that we are going to pick up somebody else and have a threesome or we are going to see The 1975 in concert." Kara deadpans and Lena chokes on air.</p><p>"The latter, definitely the latter." Lena stutters, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink.</p><p>"Dang, I was hoping for the threesome." Kara shrugs, a small smile tugging at her lips.</p><p>"You are something else, Kara Danvers." Lena shakes her head and places her hand on the seat in between the two of them. "I mean if you don't want to go to the concert I can always sell the tickets and-"</p><p>"Let's not be irrational now, Lena." The blonde scoffs playfully, which causes Lena to let out a hearty laugh. A comfortable silence fills the air once again and Kara looks down at the pale hand resting between them. She inches her own hand off her lap and brings it to rest close to Lena’s. "All jokes aside, I'm really happy to be with you right now and inside I'm totally fangirling about tonight because I really really really love The 1975." Kara expresses and Lena chuckles.</p><p>"I'm glad you are excited, darling." Lena says and Kara’s eyes soften at the pet name.</p><p>When they arrive to the venue, both girls shuffle out and walk into the building. Lena immediately snakes her arm around Kara’s waist while they navigate through a large crowd of people in the lobby. Her eyes scan the signs to find their section and when she sees Section 13, she leads them through the tunnel and to their seats.</p><p>The girl's spend the rest of the night singing their hearts out to every song the band plays. When "Somebody Else" comes on, Kara looks over at Lena, her eyes sparkling. She watches Lena sing her heart out and the blonde feels a smile of adoration tug at her lips. Lena turns her attention from the stage to the girl beside her when she doesn't hear Kara singing anymore. She sees that blue eyes are focused on her instead of the band and before she can speak, she feels soft lips touch her own.</p><p>There are sparks, butterflies, fireworks. Both girls feel every emotion, all at once.</p><p>Kara smiles into the kiss causing Lena to do the same. The brunette brings her hands up and strokes her thumbs tenderly across Kara’s soft cheeks. The kisses are soft and slow, not rushed or eager.</p><p>When the song ends and the crowd erupts in cheers, Lena and Kara finally pull apart. Kara doesn't move back all the way, but instead leans in and hovers her lips over the brunette’s left ear.</p><p>"I take back what I said about the threesome. I don't think I want to share you with somebody else."<br/>_________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>_________________</p><p>Distracted by the memory, Kara ends up tripping and colliding with the asphalt.</p><p>"Ma'am are you okay?" She hears a stranger ask and she just nods her head as she slowly peels her body off of the ground</p><p>"Yeah." She smiles at the concerned woman.</p><p>"Are you sure? You're bleeding." The lady points out and Kara looks down and sees that both her knees are bloody and the palms of her hands are too.</p><p>"I'm sure. Thanks for checking." Kara offers her a bright smile and the lady just nods her head and walks off.</p><p>Luckily, she isn't too far from her house. As she walks back, she replays the memory back in her head over and over again. She brings her fingers up to touch her lips and smiles widely when she realizes that she now not only remembered the first time she met Lena, but their first date and kiss as well. The entire trip back to her house consists of her grinning from ear to ear, which probably seems odd to anyone who sees her because she has blood oozing from her skin. However, she just can’t seem to stop smiling.</p><p>Lena has that effect on her though. Just one single thought of the green-eyed girl or one smile from the green-eyed girl has the power to make any negative situation or any negative thing in Kara’s life seem not so bad. Plus, Kara’s slowly starting to remember what seems to be one hell of a love story. How could she be anything but happy?</p>
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<a name="section0028"><h2>28. Chapter 28</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I see you’re at the beach now, so I’ll let you go so you can enjoy your time there.” Lena smiles fondly at her computer screen.</p><p>“It’s beautiful out today, Lee. I wish you were here.” Kara presses a button on her phone so that the camera is now facing the ocean and not her.</p><p>“I wish I could be there too, darling. I miss you so much.” The green-eyed girl takes in the beautiful scenery before Kara turns the camera back facing her. Lena can’t help but think that Kara is more beautiful than any beach or ocean view that she has ever seen. The blue of the ocean doesn’t hold a candle to the blue that she sees when she looks in Kara’s eyes.</p><p>“I miss you too, Lee. I’ll text you when I get home from the beach.” The blonde smiles before pressing her hand to her lips and blowing Lena a quick kiss.</p><p>“Please do. I want to know that you've made it back home safely.” The brunette replies. “Bye, darling.” She puts her hand to her lips and mimics Kara’s action.</p><p>“Bye, Lena.” Kara offers her one last soft smile before ending the FaceTime and tucking her phone into her bag.</p><p>Luckily, the two won’t be separated for too much longer. Kara will be home soon. This weekend to be exact. It’s currently Monday and Lucy and Nia’s wedding is on Saturday. Luckily, she had already gotten sized for her maid of honor dress back during the summer and Lucy informed her recently that her dress is at Alex’s place.</p><p>Kara’s stomach flips every time she remembers that she will get to see Lena in person in just a few days. She smiles momentarily at the thought as she pulls her book out of her bag. Being her naturally clumsy self, the book slips out of her hands and falls face down on the sand. She immediately retrieves it and dusts the sand off. It's such a small gesture, but it brings back a huge memory that she thought she'd never have the pleasure of ever remembering again.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>Kara wakes up from her nap and immediately looks at the clock that reads 3 pm. She looks around the unfamiliar room, forgetting where she is momentarily, but then she remembers that she and Lena flew to Venice this morning to celebrate their two year anniversary. They wanted to celebrate in the place where it all began. She frowns when she reaches her arm out and all she feels is a cold bed. When she sits up and stretches, she notices an envelope sitting on the nightstand. </p><p>The front of it reads, “Come find me, darling.” When she opens it up, there is a card that says, “Where green eyes locked with blue for the first time.”</p><p>Kara scrambles out of the bed and throws on a pair of ripped jeans and a tank top. Once she is dressed and looks halfway decent, she gets in their rental car and heads to the classroom where they first met. When she arrives there, she finds her second clue.</p><p>The card reads, “Where we both realized we never wanted somebody else.”</p><p>Kara's smile widens as she tucks the paper into her back pocket. She then leaves the campus and drives to the arena where they shared their first kiss. There she finds the album “I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It” by The 1975 sitting behind the glass of the box office. There is a piece of paper taped to it and Kara reaches her hand inside the opening in the glass to retrieve it. </p><p>It says, “Where we almost recreated the steamy scene in Titanic.” She blushes momentarily before tucking the clue into her back pocket. She then returns to her car and drives to the local college again.</p><p>When she arrives at the art classroom where she stripped down in front of Lena for the first time, she finds another clue sitting on a stool in the middle of the room, where she sat years ago. </p><p>The clue reads, “Where I gave you all of me and you did the same... p.s. I know something about this art room makes you want to take off all your clothes, but please wait until you find me so I can help you out of them.” Kara just laughs before heading back to the car and driving to the place where they made love for the first time.</p><p>She arrives at the secluded beach at 5 pm and the sun is starting to set. Orange and red colors light up the sky and Kara remembers that the sunset today looks almost identical to the one she watched with Lena here a couple of years ago. When she walks closer to the water, she sees a blanket sprawled out on the sand, candles lit all around it. In the middle sits Lena’s Bluetooth speaker and it's playing “Somebody Else.” The only other thing on the blanket is a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird. She immediately squats down and picks up the book. She dusts off the sand from the cover that she accidentally kicked on it when she walked up. </p><p>On the front is a note that says, “I remember everything about the first time I saw you. Every little thing. Including what page you were reading before we exchanged names for the first time. Do you remember?”</p><p>Kara furrows her eyebrows in concentration as she thinks back to that day in the classroom. After a couple of seconds of trying to remember, it hits her.</p><p>Chapter 13.</p><p>She immediately turns to Chapter 13 and when she finds the page, her heart starts beating wildly in her chest. Harper Lee's words always made her feel so much, it's the reason why she rereads To Kill a Mockingbird over and over. However, the words on this particular page that are making her heart beat rapidly were not written by Harper Lee. They were written by Lena Luthor. They read:</p><p>“Will you marry me?”</p><p>Tears start falling freely as she scans the beach for her green-eyed girl. Her search is halted when she hears a raspy voice speak up from behind her.</p><p>"Good choice." Lena’s voice fills her ears and Kara immediately spins around. The tears start coming faster when she sees that Lena is down on one knee.</p><p>"Yeah, it's my favorite." Kara chokes out as she repeats the same words to the brunette that she said the first time they met.</p><p>"You're my favorite." Lena replies instantly as she reaches out to grab Kara’s left hand. "I've loved you since the first time I saw you, Kara Danvers, and I fall deeper in love with you every single time that you look at me, every single time that you kiss me, every single time that you smile." Lena takes a moment to kiss every knuckle on the soft hand that she holds in her own. "Your love of literature and music and just life in general is so beautiful. You see the good in everyone around you and you are kind to everyone you meet, even if they do not deserve your kindness. I want to spend the rest of my life watching in awe as you pick up To Kill a Mockingbird and read it cover to cover for the millionth time, watching in awe as your eyes light up as bright as the sun every single time potstickers are set in front of you, watching in awe as you somehow manage to be the perfect combination of cute and sexy, and just being in awe of how you have the power to make me fall in love with you all over again, every single day."</p><p>Lena pauses to wipe away the tears that are flowing freely down her cheeks while Kara just lets hers fall, they are coming down too fast and she knows there is no use in trying to wipe them away while new ones are still falling. "You give so generously and always with the intention of wanting nothing in return. You gave me your heart so effortlessly and still to this day you have no idea that when you gave it to me, you gave me the single greatest gift anyone has ever given me. So today, I want to give you something. A promise. A promise to love you for the rest of my life." Lena pulls a black velvet box from the pocket of her leather jacket and slowly opens it. "So Kara Danvers, will you marry me and give me the absolute pleasure of falling in love with you all over again, every single day, for the rest of our lives? Because I don't want to fall in love with somebody else... anyone else. Ever. I just want you." Kara chokes back a sob as she drops to her knees in front of Lena and launches herself at the green-eyed girl. She immediately attaches their lips together and hungrily kisses the brunette. Lena immediately snakes her arms around the girl's waist and brings her closer to her body. Kara detaches their lips and stares into her favorite pair of green eyes.</p><p>"Yes." She grins widely as she brings her hands up to wipe away the tears that are streaming down Lena’s face. "The answer is yes, it will always be yes, baby. I love you so much." Kara plants kisses all over the green-eyed girl’s face before bringing their lips back together in a searing kiss. Lena fumbles with the box and retrieves the ring from it while slowing down the pace of their kissing. When she pulls away, she carefully takes Kara’s left hand that is resting on her cheek and brings it between the two of them. Slowly, she slides the diamond onto her ring finger and smiles broadly when the ring seems to fit perfectly.</p><p>"It's perfect." Kara whispers as she studies the new piece of jewelry and Lena just leans her forehead against Kara’s.</p><p>"So are you. So are we." Lena replies and softly kisses Kara’s nose. "Now lets get you wet, darling.”</p><p>Kara leans back and sees Lena smirking devilishly at her. "Don't waste any time do you, Luthor?"</p><p>"Nope." Lena smiles as she leans in and ghosts her lips over Kara’s. Before the blonde can lean in to connect her lips with Lena’s, the brunette stands up abruptly and pulls Kara with her. "But that can wait until we get home, I actually had another kind of wet in mind." A mischievous smirk crosses Lena’s face and before Kara can react, Lena bends down and wraps her arms around her fiancé's legs so she can effectively sling the girl over her shoulder.</p><p>"Lena Luthor! Don't you even think about it!" Kara bangs her fists into Lena’s back. The green-eyed girl makes no move to put her down, but instead walks down the beach and wades into the cool water with Kara in tow.</p><p>The blonde yelps as Lena falls into the water and submerges them both under water. They both reemerge seconds later and Kara just glares at Lena, a pout on her lips.</p><p>"I told you I'd get you wet. I had to keep my promise, darling.” Lena smirks.</p><p>"Yeah, well my idea of getting you wet is a little different." Kara husks as she walks back up to the shore. "This kind of wet is fun, but my way is more fun I assure you." The blonde turns around when she's on the shore and faces Lena. "Because it doesn't involve this." She peels her wet top over her head and drops it on the beach. "Or this." She unhooks her lacy bra and lets it fall to the sand as she back peddles to the blanket. "And it definitely doesn't involve these." She slides her jeans, along with her underwear, down her toned legs.</p><p>When she stands back upright, she smirks at her fiancé, who is still standing in the water, her jaw dropped. Kara just turns around and walks the rest of the way to the blanket before sitting down on it. "Coming, fiancé?" The blonde bites her lip and watches as Lena scrambles out of the water.<br/>________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>________________</p><p>Once again, Kara snaps out of her thoughts and sees her own tears cascading from her chin and landing on the front cover of her favorite book. Tears of happiness, of course. She smiles through the tears as she lays down on the towel she spread out. Blue eyes close as the sun attempts to dry the tears from her face. While she lays there, eyes closed, she ponders what exactly is warming her body more: the sun or the memories attached to the book that is currently hugged to her chest.</p>
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<a name="section0029"><h2>29. Chapter 29</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara sits down at a booth in one of her favorite coffee shops in Midvale. She pulls out To Kill a Mockingbird and opens it up to the page where she left off last.</p><p>Kara leaves early tomorrow morning to go back to National City for the wedding and she’s giddy because she gets to see Lena tomorrow. As she sits in the cafe, she finds that reading is nearly an impossible task because she keeps getting lost in her thoughts. Thoughts about one green-eyed girl. </p><p>"Miss." She hears someone speak to her, but before she can answer or see who it is, she finds herself remembering a more painful time in her past.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"Miss!" Kara hears a man yell and both her and Lena turn around. "Your boarding pass didn't scan properly. Can you please come back out here so I can re-scan it?" Kara sees that he is addressing her wife and the blonde absentmindedly tightens her grip on Lena’s hand.</p><p>Lena turns to her with a reassuring smile. "I'll be right back, okay?" She offers the handle of the suitcase to Kara. "Go ahead and get situated and everything. I'll see you soon."</p><p>Kara can't shake the sick feeling that's in the pit of her stomach, but she just pushes it aside for the moment and smiles tenderly at her wife. "Hurry back, Lee. I'm tired and I need a shoulder to sleep on." Kara places a gentle kiss on the green-eyed girl's lips. She feels Lena tilt her head so she can deepen the kiss, but the man behind them clears his throat and Kara pulls away before Lena can protest.</p><p>Kara smiles when Lena momentarily intertwines their hands and leans in to place a quick kiss on her nose. "Love you, baby."</p><p>The blonde giggles as butterflies invade her stomach. She immediately returns the gesture. "Back atcha, green eyes."</p><p>Lena reluctantly retracts her hand and Kara frowns slightly at the loss of contact. She watches as her wife follows the man back up the ramp and when she makes it to the front, Kara turns and starts making her way on the plane. Of course it couldn't be easy for her and she sighs when the wheel of the suitcase decides to conveniently get hung in the crack where the boarding ramp meets the plane. After struggling with it and cursing at it for a few seconds, the suitcase finally decides to cooperate and allows her to pull it over the threshold from the ramp to the plane.</p><p>Once on, she navigates to her seat and puts her suitcase and bag in the overhead bin. She frowns when she realizes the two seats next to her are filled up.</p><p>“Maybe Lena just couldn't get two seats together since it was last minute.” Kara thinks as she scoots past the two people on her row and settles down at the window seat.</p><p>She anxiously peeks over the seats, waiting for her wife to board the plane. Her right leg bounces up and down in anticipation and after 10 minutes have passed, panic starts to set in. As soon as she goes to unbuckle, she sees a flight attendant pull the plane door closed.</p><p>"No, wait!" Kara shouts as she hastily rips off the seat belt and scurries back out to the aisle. The two flight attendants that are on board look at her with matching sympathetic expressions. "My wife, she was right behind me, she just had to re-scan her boarding pass." Kara tries to reason with the two ladies, but they just sigh.</p><p>"Ma'am, can you please take a seat for us? The plane is about to start moving." One of them touches Kara’s arm in attempt to guide her back to her seat, but Kara just shrugs her off.</p><p>"No, please you have to stop the plane! My wife was supposed to be on here with me!" Kara feels tears start pouring down her face when neither of the women make a move to do what she is asking of them.</p><p>"Ma'am, you have to sit down. We have to move away from the boarding ramp, but we can't do that until you are seated." One of the flight attendants tries to reason with her. Before she can object, she hears another voice speak up behind her.</p><p>"Kara." She hears a male voice say her name and she spins around to see that the guy she was seated next to is standing up. "This is what Lena wanted."</p><p>Her heart starts to pound in her chest as she looks incredulously at this stranger. "How do you-"</p><p>"My name is Winn. My sister is a flight attendant and knows Sam, Lena’s friend." He explains. "Before I boarded, they informed me of your situation and asked me to explain to you what is going on. Can you come and sit down for me?"</p><p>Kara nods dejectedly and slides past the two strangers to take her seat again. As soon as she sits down, the plane starts to slowly move away from the boarding ramp. She feels the stranger next to her looking at her, but she avoids his gaze and looks out the window. She squints her eyes when she sees a brunette gazing out the airport window and feels the tears start coming down faster when she realizes that it is her brunette.</p><p>“What if I never see her again? What if something happens to her?” Kara whispers as she starts to bang her fists on the airplane window while sobs escape her lips. She knows everyone around her is staring, but she can't seem to find it in her to care at the moment. She stops the pounding on the small, round window when she sees Lena bring her hand up to rest on the glass window of the airport.</p><p>Kara lets another sob escape as she flattens her own palm out on the glass. She watches Lena until the plane starts moving down the runway at a fast speed and when she can no longer see her, Kara starts hyperventilating.</p><p>"I c-can’t lose her. I-I can't." She chokes out as she presses her eyes shut tightly and digs her fingernails into her palms.</p><p>"It's gonna be okay, Kara." She hears the guy next to her say and she opens her eyes and turns to him.</p><p>"How did this happen?" She asks.</p><p>"They told me that Sam could only get one seat. By the time Lena called her, there was only one seat available on this plane." He informs her. "I guess she chose to give it to you."</p><p>"I would rather her have it. I would rather her be safe. Not me." Kara whimpers and she feels a soft hand cover her own.</p><p>"You won't lose her." Winn tries to console her.</p><p>"You don't know that." Kara hiccups as she wipes at the dampness on her cheeks with her free hand.</p><p>"I know that people who are meant to be together will always find their way back to each other in the end." Winn whispers while stroking the small, slightly tan hand under his with his thumb. "If it's any consolation, I have tons of people that I love in Venice that I had to leave behind too. My entire family actually and my boyfriend. My sister could only get one ticket too and my whole family drove me to the airport and made me get on without them. I couldn't even get in touch with my boyfriend before I left." He admits and Kara finds comfort in the fact that she isn't alone in this. She doesn't even know this guy, but his eyes seem sincere and in this moment, she needs the comfort so she lets his hand stay on top of hers and she lays her head on his shoulder.</p><p>She closes her eyes and just pretends that it's Lena’s shoulder that she's laying on right now.<br/>_________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>_________________</p><p>Kara is broken from her thoughts when she feels someone shake her shoulder lightly. Knowing by now that there are probably tears, she immediately reaches up and uses her shirt sleeve to wipe away the dampness on her cheeks.</p><p>"You good?" She hears someone ask and she looks to her right to see a waitress looking down at her with a sympathetic smile etched across her face. She just nods her head and watches as the lady holds up a finger and walks away. She furrows her eyebrows in confusion, but doesn't question it. A couple of minutes later, the waitress returns with a steaming mug and a chocolate chip cookie that is easily the size of Kara’s head.</p><p>"Chocolate fixes everything." The lady sets the treats down in front of her. "The hot chocolate and cookie are on the house." The woman informs her.</p><p>"They look delicious. Thank you so much." The blonde smiles warmly at the woman.</p><p>"No problem, hun." She pats Kara’s shoulder before retreating back behind the counter. She picks up the mug, but before she can take a sip, her phone rings. She sees that it’s her sister and she presses the green button.</p><p>“Hello?” She presses the device to her ear and pops a piece of the cookie into her mouth.</p><p>“They got him, Kara.” She hears her sister say. “William is in jail.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0030"><h2>30. Chapter 30</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara rushes to her sister’s apartment as soon as she gets back to National City. Eliza drove her back, but they had a flat tire on the way, and now she’s running a bit late. She has about 3 hours until Lucy and Nia's wedding starts so she knows there is no time to waste. Kara called Lucy as soon as she found out about the flat tire and the bride to be freaked out on her. Kara just listened and apologized profusely while promising that she would be there. </p><p>It only takes the blonde about 2 hours to get ready, which only leaves her an hour to get to the venue. After applying a light shade of brown to her lips, she steps back and glances at the finished product.</p><p>“Not too shabby.” Kara whispers to herself as she spins around once. </p><p>The alarm on her phone goes off, reminding her that she only has an hour until the wedding starts. She grabs the car keys off the table that Alex left for her and rushes to the car as fast as she can with heels on. Of course, she gets stuck in traffic so when she arrives, there's only 30 minutes until the start of the wedding. The wedding is outdoors, but she was given instructions to go to a small house to meet with the bridal party. Her hands start shaking as soon as she gets to the front of the house. Her eyes are about to connect with her favorite pair of green ones, the ones that she now remembers falling in love with over and over again these last couple of years.</p><p>When she steps through the door, she is met with Lucy’s family, and after they attack her with hugs, they point her in the direction of where Lucy is waiting for the ceremony to start. When she gets to the door, it's already cracked so she slowly pushes it open and sees her best friend looking at herself in the mirror.</p><p>"How did I know I'd come in here and find you staring at yourself in the mirror?" Kara smirks and Lucy spins around quickly after hearing her best friend's voice.</p><p>"Jesus, Kar, I thought you were going to miss my big day!" Lucy runs over and wraps the girl in a bear hug. “You aren’t allowed to ever leave me again.”</p><p>“I'm not going anywhere." Kara promises. She squeezes Lucy tightly one good time before stepping back and allowing herself to really look at the bride. "You look absolutely stunning, Luce. Hands down the most beautiful bride that I've ever seen."</p><p>Lucy’s eyes start watering. "Dammit, Kar, don't make me cry and ruin all my makeup." The brunette fans her eyes in attempt to keep the tears at bay.</p><p>Before Kara can respond, another voice fills the air.</p><p>"Lucy, Nia just walked down the aisle are you..." Lena stops in her tracks when she comes face to face with her favorite blonde. "ready." She finishes her sentence.</p><p>Kara’s heart goes ballistic in her chest when her eyes lock with Lena’s. The blonde smiles warmly at her wife, while the green-eyed girl looks stunned. </p><p>"You two have 2 minutes. Two minutes. Then both your asses better be ready to walk down that aisle ahead of me." Lucy pipes up before exiting the room. </p><p>The green-eyed girl quickly makes her way to the middle of the room where Kara is standing. The blonde barely gets out a “hey, Lee” before Lena clasps her hand around the back of Kara’s neck and crashes their lips together. The musician's heart beats erratically in her chest as she feels Lena’s lips moving against her own. The kisses are just as soft and warm as Kara remembers them being and the overwhelming happiness of finally being reunited with the love of her life causes tears to well up in the blonde’s eyes. Lena is feeling all the same emotions and she only pulls away when she feels wet tears hit her hands, which are gently cupping Kara’s cheeks.</p><p>"What's wrong, darling?” The brunette pulls back, her eyes scanning the watery blue eyes in front of her.</p><p>"I've just missed you so much and I have some really good news, but I want to tell you when we have more than 2 minutes to talk.” Kara breathes out and Lena leans her forehead against the tan one in front of her.</p><p>“You aren’t allowed to leave again. If you go, I’m coming too.” Lena says, her voice thick with emotion.</p><p>Kara shakes her head and plants a kiss on Lena’s nose. “I’m not leaving. I'm here to stay. I'm yours."</p><p>Lena smiles like an idiot and she starts to go back in for another kiss, but is interrupted by Lucy yelling.</p><p>"Ladies! Stop sucking face and get your asses out here!" The bride to be yells and both girls start laughing.</p><p>"C'mon darling, let's go." Lena steals a quick kiss and reaches her hand up to fix Kara’s lipstick before grabbing the blonde’s hand and leading her to the wooden door that separates them from the guests and the rest of the wedding party.</p><p>Lena opens the door and steps through. Kara watches as she slowly makes her way down the aisle. Kara sneaks a glance at Nia, who is standing at the end of the aisle. The other bride to be looks absolutely stunning and when the door closes again, Kara turns to her best friend.</p><p>"She looks beautiful, Luce. Your heart is about to explode." Kara smiles warmly at Lucy before planting a quick kiss to her cheek. It’s Kara’s turn now, so she opens the door and starts making her way down the aisle. She immediately locks eyes with the other bride and mouths “you look beautiful.” Nia just smiles warmly at her. Her eyes find Alex’s next. Her sister is seated next to Maggie toward the front. Both girls offer her a small wave and she gives them a bright smile in return. Finally, her eyes find green ones and her entire body warms. Kara winks at her wife and watches in adoration as Lena’s smile grows in size.</p><p>Lucy enters next and Kara immediately starts bawling and the tears come faster when she sees tears slip from Nia’s eyes as she watches Lucy walk toward her. Lena sees the tears start dripping down her wife's cheeks and she wants nothing more than to just hold her, but unfortunately they are standing on opposite sides.</p><p>Kara finally gets her tears at bay, but then the two start exchanging vows and the tears start coming faster. She looks over at Lena while the girls are saying their vows and flashes of their own wedding start flooding into her mind. She remembers the wedding, the vows, how beautiful Lena looked in her white lace dress. She remembers that the beach they got married on is the exact beach where Lena proposed and where they made love for the first time. She remembers their honeymoon and the passionate sex they had their wedding night. After the last memory floods through her mind, she refocuses her eyes on Lena and the girl smiles sadly at her. The green-eyed girl mouths “you okay, darling?” and Kara just nods her head while wiping the wetness from her cheeks.</p><p>"I now pronounce you wife and wife. You may kiss the bride." The officiant says and Kara’s heart explodes when she watches her two best friends share their first kiss as a married couple. She claps and grins widely as she watches the two walk down the aisle hand in hand. Lena walks over to her and offers her arm in which Kara graciously accepts. She allows the green-eyed girl to lead her down the aisle and a huge smile graces her lips as she remembers her and Lena walking down the sandy aisle minutes after they said I do.</p><p>As soon as the wedding is over, everyone makes their way to the big white tent that’s set up, which is where the reception is being held. However, Kara has other plans, and so she leads Lena back to the house where the bridal party got ready. She finds the first empty room and locks them in it. As soon as they are alone, her lips hungrily collide with Lena’s. The brunette is stunned at first, but still kisses Kara back with just as much urgency. The blonde swipes her tongue across Lena’s bottom lip and when she opens her mouth, Kara darts her tongue inside. When their tongues touch, both girls moan at the contact.</p><p>Kara knows this is about to escalate quickly, so she gently pushes Lena back. </p><p>“Before we continue, I have something to tell you.” Kara sits down on the edge of the bed and Lena does the same. The green-eyed girl reaches over and takes the blonde’s hands in her own.</p><p>“What is it, darling?” Kara looks up to meet Lena’s concerned eyes.</p><p>“While I was in Midvale, I started getting my memories back. I remember almost everything, Lee. I remember our first meeting in Venice, our first kiss at the concert, our first time on the beach, your proposal on that same beach, our wedding, our-” Kara is interrupted when Lena’s lips find hers again. The blonde cups Lena’s ivory cheeks and wipes away the tears that are already spilling down them. When Lena half smiles, half sobs into the kiss, Kara pulls back and looks into teary green eyes.</p><p>“I love you, Lena. I’m so sorry for forgetting you-”</p><p>“Kara, baby, what happened was not your fault. You don’t need to apologize to me.” Lena smiles, her lips trembling. “I love you so fucking much. This past year has been one of the hardest of my life, but I never once blamed you for that. I never once stopped loving you.” </p><p>“Thank you for not giving up on me, Lee.” Kara's thumbs move back and forth across Lena's cheeks.</p><p>“In sickness and in health, love.” Lena turns her head to the side and kisses Kara’s palm. “I will never give up on you.”</p><p>Kara closes the distance this time and captures red lips in her own. She wraps one hand around the back of her wife’s neck and the scoots up to the middle of the bed. Lena follows her and hovers above her when she is fully laying down. Kara snakes one hand under her dress and trails her fingers up Lena’s thigh until she reaches her underwear. Lena gasps in Kara’s mouth when she feels her fingers sneak inside. Lena drops her forehead to Kara’s and lets out a loud moan as the blonde’s fingers expertly bring her closer and closer to climax.</p><p>"You look so hot in this dress, Lee." Kara husks as she attaches her lips to Lena’s neck. She sucks on her pulse point and slightly grazes her teeth over it before soothing the spot with her tongue. This sends Lena over the edge and Kara slows down the pace of her fingers and licks up Lena’s neck until she reaches her ear. "I've missed you, baby. I've missed this." She whispers before removing her fingers. </p><p>"Fucking hell. I’ve missed that.” The green-eyed girl whispers as she rolls off Kara and onto her back. When the brunette looks over, Kara is staring at her with so much tenderness and love that she swears her insides are melting. "I love you so much.” She turns to the side and when Kara turns to face her as well, she leans in and places a soft kiss to her lips.</p><p>“I love you more.” The blue-eyed girl says in between kisses. She starts to roll over on top of Lena, but a banging on the door halts her.</p><p>"Kara! It's time!" Alex shouts and Kara’s eyes widen. She quickly sits up from the bed and walks to the other side of the room where there’s a mirror.</p><p>"Time for what?" Lena arches an eyebrow as Kara finishes fixing her lipstick. </p><p>"You'll see." Kara turns around from the mirror and walks over to the bed. She gives Lena a quick kiss on the lips before opening the door and exiting.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0031"><h2>31. Chapter 31</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As soon as Kara steps under the tent, she sees Lucy and Nia sitting at a table near the makeshift stage. When her eyes meet Lucy’s, the brunette sends her a knowing smirk and Kara just rolls her eyes, a small smile playing on her lips. She finds Alex and retrieves a mic from her.</p><p>"I gave the DJ your music so you're good to go." The older sister smiles and ushers Kara to where the speakers and DJ are set up. The musician faces the guests and clears her throat.</p><p>"I've never been good with speaking my feelings, I would much rather express them through music." Kara grips the microphone tighter. "I wrote this song about a love that's unwavering and beautiful. This one is for the newlyweds. It's called ‘Lover.'" Kara smiles and when the music starts playing, she closes her eyes momentarily and takes a calming breath before starting to sing the song.</p><p>We could leave the Christmas lights up 'til January<br/>This is our place, we make the rules<br/>And there's a dazzling haze, a mysterious way about you, dear<br/>Have I known you twenty seconds or twenty years?</p><p>Can I go where you go?<br/>Can we always be this close forever and ever?<br/>And ah, take me out, and take me home<br/>You're my, my, my, my lover</p><p>Kara opens her eyes and scans the room until she finds her favorite pair of green ones.</p><p>We could let our friends crash in the living room<br/>This is our place, we make the call<br/>And I'm highly suspicious that everyone who sees you wants you<br/>I've loved you five summers now, honey, but I want 'em all</p><p>Can I go where you go?<br/>Can we always be this close forever and ever?<br/>And ah, take me out, and take me home (forever and ever)<br/>You're my, my, my, my lover</p><p>The musician doesn’t take her eyes off her wife the whole song.</p><p>Ladies and gentlemen, will you please stand?<br/>With every guitar string scar on my hand<br/>I take this magnetic force of a man to be my lover<br/>My heart's been borrowed and yours has been blue<br/>All's well that ends well to end up with you<br/>Swear to be overdramatic and true to my lover<br/>And you'll save all your dirtiest jokes for me<br/>And at every table, I'll save you a seat, lover</p><p>Can I go where you go?<br/>Can we always be this close forever and ever?<br/>And ah, take me out, and take me home (forever and ever)<br/>You're my, my, my, my<br/>Oh, you're my, my, my, my<br/>Darling, you're my, my, my, my lover</p><p>When the music fades, Kara smiles gratefully when everyone erupts in cheers. Lucy and Nia stand up and walk to the front to hug the blonde.</p><p>"Kara, that was beautiful." Nia wipes the dampness from her cheeks.</p><p>"I hope you send that one to the label. I want to hear it on the radio. It was fire.” Lucy high fives her best friend.</p><p>“I’ve sent it to them and they loved it.” Kara promises. Seconds later, she feels arms snake around her waist and she sees a pale hand holding a drink up to her. She takes it and smiles when she feels lips press to her bare shoulder.</p><p>"That was beautiful, darling. You were amazing." Lena hovers her lips over Kara’s ear momentarily before placing a kiss to her cheek.</p><p>"Thanks, Lee." Kara grins widely and leans back against Lena’s chest.</p><p>"MY SHIP HAS SAILED!" Lucy announces and it's loud enough to get the attention of half the guests in the room.</p><p>"Baby, shhh!" Nia chastises her overly enthusiastic wife.</p><p>"I'm sorry, baby, but look at my beautiful ship sailing." Lucy points to the two women who are wrapped in each other's arms.</p><p>"Your ship is right here... and can hear you." Kara chuckles.</p><p>"I mean I agree with her, Kara. We kind of do look fucking great together." Lena squeezes her tighter and Kara laughs before taking a long gulp of her champagne.</p><p>"I mean yeah we are pretty cute." The blonde agrees.</p><p>Eventually, Alex and Maggie join the conversation and all six of them stand around talking and catching up for the next half hour. However, when the DJ starts playing one of Lena’s favorite songs, she takes the glass of champagne from her wife's hand and places both of their glasses on a table beside them.</p><p>"May I have this dance?" The brunette extends her hand out and Kara nods, an amused smile on her face. She takes the pale hand in hers and allows the beautiful brunette to lead her to the dance floor. When they find an empty spot, Lena stops and pulls Kara into her. The blonde wraps her arms around Lena’s neck and the latter wraps hers around her wife's petite waist.</p><p>Kara leans her head against Lena’s as they sway back and forth to the music.</p><p>"I'm gonna love you more than anyone." Lena sings into Kara’s ear and the blonde remembers a vivid memory from their wedding day.<br/>__________<br/>Flashback<br/>__________</p><p>"Great choice, Lee." Kara smiles warmly at her wife and Lena wraps her arms around the blonde’s waist.</p><p>"Well I know you have a soft spot for Gavin DeGraw and I remember that after you heard this song for the first time, you said you wanted it to be your first dance song at your wedding." The green-eyed girl says as she pulls her wife closer to her body. "It took everything in me that day to not correct you and say our wedding because even though it was still early in our relationship, I knew I wanted to marry you."</p><p>"I can't believe you remembered that." Kara chokes out, her voice thick with emotion.</p><p>"Of course I remembered, darling." Lena pulls back a bit so she can look her wife in the eyes. "I remember everything about you. I remember what you were wearing the first day I saw you. I remember you were wearing strawberry lip-gloss when we kissed for the first time. I remember that you had a burn mark on your neck from your curling iron the night we made love for the first time on the beach." Lena tries to continue, but Kara cuts her off with a kiss.</p><p>"I pity the people who never find a love like this because they'll never know just how beautiful life can be. With you in my life, all the colors of the world seem so much brighter. You make even my darkest days seem bright. You're my moon." Kara whispers against Lena’s lips and the brunette closes the gap between them after her wife finishes talking.</p><p>They spend the rest of their first dance stealing kisses and when they aren't doing that, Lena is singing the lyrics of the song to Kara.</p><p>"I'm gonna love you more than anyone." Lena sings and Kara whispers sweet nothings in her wife’s ear. Both girls are smiling exceptionally wide because their forever has just begun.<br/>_________________<br/>End of Flashback<br/>_________________</p><p>Kara is broken from her thoughts when she feels warm hands cup her cheeks.</p><p>"Darling, are you okay?" Lena searches her wife's teary eyes.</p><p>Kara nods her head and smiles through her tears. “This was our first dance song at our wedding.” The blonde smiles softly at the woman in front of her.</p><p>“It was.” Lena returns the smile and plants a lingering kiss to her wife’s lips.</p><p>The rest of the night is spent dancing, laughing, and drinking… a lot. Lucy and Nia insisted that they all take multiple shots and everyone but Lena and Maggie did. Maggie has to go into work later and Lena informed everyone that she was Kara’s designated driver. The blonde had already had a few glasses of wine before the shots and Lena knows she’s a lightweight. Once it’s 11 pm, they all walk to where the “just married” limo is parked. Once the two newlyweds say their goodbyes to everyone, they are off to their honeymoon.</p><p>Lena gently loops an arm around Kara’s waist when she sees her swaying back and forth. </p><p>“I’m going to get her home.” The brunette leads Kara to where Alex and Maggie are standing so they can say their goodbyes.</p><p>“Get home safely.” Alex leans in and gives Lena a quick hug and she tries to do the same to Kara, but the blonde grabs her sister’s face and plants a wet kiss to her cheek.</p><p>“Goodnight, sis.” Kara chuckles as Alex grimaces and wipes the slobber from her cheek.</p><p>“See ya, little Danvers.” Maggie ruffles the blondes hair before turning to Lena. “Bye, Luthor.” Lena gives her a quick wave before leading her and Kara to her parked car. </p><p>“Alright, in you go.” Lena gently guides her to the passenger’s seat. The whole time, Kara is incoherently singing a song that Lena doesn’t know. Once she makes sure that no limbs are hanging out the door, she slowly closes it and makes her way to the driver’s side.</p><p>“Babe, can you drive me by my apartment? I need some clothes to sleep in and I need to get that stuffed animal that you won for me that time at the fair.” Kara slurs. “I sleep better with it. Did you know I used to sleep with it everyyyyy night before I knew we were married and now I know why I liked it so much. My head did not remember, but my heart remembered you gave it to me.” Lena looks over and sees that Kara is giving her a dopey smile. She reaches over and grabs the girl’s hand in her own. </p><p>“Well how could I say no to that?” Lena brings her wife’s hand to her lips and presses a kiss to it. Kara chooses the music and midway through the first song, she stops singing and Lena looks over to see that she’s asleep with her head on the window. The brunette stifles a laugh and turns the music down a bit. About 20 minutes later, Lena pulls the car into a familiar apartment complex. Once she puts the car in park, she reaches to the floorboard to retrieve Kara’s purse so she can get her keys. After she finds them, she lays a jacket from her backseat on the console and guides Kara’s head so it’s resting on the jacket. That position looks more comfortable than the one she was in a second ago. </p><p>After she safely locks Kara in the car, she makes her way to her wife’s old apartment. When she gets in, she grabs a bag and stuffs some pajamas and the stuffed animal in it. Midway through zipping it up, her phone rings and she pulls it out of her purse.</p><p>“Hello?” She puts the phone to her ear and then slings the back over her shoulder.</p><p>“It’s Maggie. Are you and Kara okay?” The detective asks and Lena furrows her eyebrows.</p><p>“Yes, why?” She asks while walking out of Kara’s room and back to the front door.</p><p>“They fucking let William out on bail and no one told me before they let him out like I asked them to. I wanted to be able to give you and Kara a heads up. I didn’t know until just a second ago.” Maggie huffs and Lena freezes. “Are you two in for the night? I know he doesn’t know where you live.”<br/>Lena’s throat goes dry when the door handle to the apartment jiggles.</p><p>“Maggie, I’m at Kara’s old apartment.” Lena whispers as soon as the door opens in front of her. “And so is William.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0032"><h2>32. Chapter 32</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“You get out of jail and the first thing you do is try to visit your ex who doesn’t want to have anything to do with you. Pathetic.” Lena scoffs as the man enters the apartment and shuts the door behind him.</p><p>“I came to get her back.” William clenches his jaw. “My girlfriend is not a lesbian.”</p><p>“Your ex girlfriend is bisexual, William. My wife is bisexual and we are happily married.” Lena sets the bag down. “Kara remembers our life together and she doesn’t want anything to do with you so please just leave. If you leave now, no one has to know you were here. Don’t make things worse for yourself.”</p><p>“What does she see in you? How can you even please her? You don’t have one of these.” He grabs at his crotch area and Lena wants to vomit. This man is sick and vile.</p><p>“Funny, Kara has told me so many times that you could never please her in bed. Not entirely surprising considering my middle finger is probably longer than your dick.” Lena smirks when she sees rage fill the man’s eyes.</p><p>“You bitch!” He lunges at her and Lena kicks him in the crotch. When he bends over, she drives her knee into his nose and smiles in satisfaction when she hears a crack. She hurriedly grabs the bag from the floor and sprints to the door. She gets it halfway open before it’s slammed shut again and her face is forcefully pressed to it.</p><p>“Maybe you just need to be with a guy to fix your little lesbian problem.” William whispers in Lena’s ear and the brunette slams her head back into his with so much force that her head spins. She immediately turns around and sees the man clutching his nose again as blood pools out of it. She blindly reaches for the door handle behind her and scurries out as soon as she gets it open. Lena is about two steps from the staircase when her body is harshly tackled to the ground. She groans in pain when she hears a crunch come from under her. Her left hand got trapped under both of their bodies and she lets out a yelp as pain starts shooting up her left arm. Seconds later, she's being flipped over and pinned to the ground by William. He smiles sadistically and Lena cringes when she sees the blood on his teeth. “You can’t even protect yourself so how the fuck are you going to protect Kara, huh?”</p><p>Hearing this vile man say her wife’s beautiful name fills her with rage. “Stay the fuck away from her! I will never let you near her again!” She brings her knee up to collide with his stomach and shoves him off her with as much power as she can muster. When he’s off her, she stands up again and goes to take a step, but William grabs her foot and yanks it out from under her. She immediately loses her balance and her head catches the stair railing on the way down. This time Lena knows she’s down for the count. </p><p>The brunette’s vision starts fading and the last thing she sees is William standing up. Before her whole world goes dark, she hears two gunshots go off.</p><p>Maggie drove over as fast as she could after Lena hung up the phone. She turned on her sirens and drove about 100 mph the whole way to the apartment. As soon as she reaches the front of it, she puts the car in park and jumps out. The detective runs up the stairs just as Lena hits her head on the railing and she pulls her gun from it’s holster when she sees William standing over her. She immediately points her gun at the bloody man.</p><p>“Hands where I can see them!” She shouts and the man just smiles, his teeth covered in blood.</p><p>“You aren’t going to stop me from being with Kara. She belongs to me.” He lunges at Maggie and the detective lowers her gun a bit and pulls the trigger twice. Two bullets pierce William’s right leg and he falls to the ground. She immediately flips him over on his stomach and grabs her handcuffs. Once she tightens them around his wrists, she retrieves her radio so she can call for two ambulances. </p><p>“You’re okay, Luthor. You’re safe.” Maggie brushes some hair from the brunette’s pale face and grabs her hand. She knows she’s alive, but she shakily presses two fingers to her neck anyway just to be sure. When she feels a slow rhythm there, she lets out a sigh of relief. She hates how helpless she feels in this situation because there’s nothing she can do. So she does the only thing she can think to do, she holds her hand tightly in her own and stays by her side.</p><p>Kara startles awake in the car when she hears two loud bangs. She raises her head from where it’s resting on Lena’s console and rubs at her eyes. When she looks around, she sees that Lena is nowhere to be found and she starts panicking a bit. The blonde immediately scurries out of the car a little too quickly and has to pause for a second until the world around her stops spinning. Once she can see clearly again, she slowly walks to the staircase and sees Maggie sitting at the top of it.</p><p>“Maggie?” Kara yells and the police officer stands up quickly and makes her way down the stairs. “What are you doing here? Where’s Lena?” The blonde looks around worriedly. </p><p>“Kara, Lena is hurt pretty badly. Two ambulances are on their way. William he-” The detective says calmly, but she’s stops talking when Kara side steps her and runs the rest of the way up the stairs. She sees William bleeding out on the ground and sees an unconscious Lena laying next to him. Kara panics when she sees the huge gash on her head and all the blood surrounding her.</p><p>“W-What happened? H-How is he even here?” The blonde screams as she drops to her knees by her wife. She shakily feels for a pulse just so she can have confirmation that she’s alive. When she feels slow thumps under her fingers she picks up Lena’s hand and brings it to her lips. She wants to pull the woman into her lap and just hold her, but the gash on her head stops Kara from doing that. She knows her wife must’ve hit her head hard and moving her could make things worse. “You’re okay, baby. I’m right here.” Tears stream down Kara’s face as her fingers delicately trace her wife’s blood-stained face. “I love you so much. I should be the one hurt. Not you. I’m so sorry.” The blonde sobs and Maggie wraps an arm around her shoulders. </p><p>Minutes later, they hear sirens in the distance and Kara lets out a sigh of relief. These past couple of minutes have felt like hours to her. They hear a few car doors shut and then they hear footsteps running up the stairs.</p><p>"Ma'am, we are going to have to ask you to step away so we can help her." A paramedic says calmly and Kara nods her head. She reluctantly lets go of her wife’s hand and carefully lays it back on the ground. She bends down and places a kiss to Lena’s lips before she allows Maggie to move them both to the side. Two paramedics carefully lift Lena’s body and place her on a stretcher. They place a brace on her neck and then carry the stretcher down the stairs. Kara watches as two other paramedics pass by and head straight for William. Maggie fills them in on the situation as they load him onto a stretcher and Kara turns away and follows after Lena’s stretcher. She can’t stand to look at the man who has caused herself and her wife so much pain and suffering. </p><p>She jogs to where they are loading Lena up in the ambulance and one of the paramedics turns to her. “Ma’am are you family?”</p><p>Kara just nods. “I’m her wife.” When the words leave her mouth, the paramedic offers the blonde his hand and helps her climb into the back of the ambulance. When she’s in, he gestures to a spot where she can sit. </p><p>Maggie appears in the doorway of the ambulance a few seconds later. “I’m going to drop by your sister’s apartment and get her and then we will meet you at the hospital. Will you be okay?” The detective asks Kara. When the blonde nods, Maggie offers her a reassuring smile before turning her attention to the paramedics. “Take care of them both.” They both nod their heads before closing the ambulance doors.</p><p>Kara picks up her wife’s hand and holds it tightly in hers once the ambulance starts moving. She brings the hand to her lips and silently prays to whoever is listening that the green-eyed girl will be okay.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0033"><h2>33. Chapter 33</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kara sits in the waiting room of the hospital for what seems like hours as she waits for updates on her wife. She has a Coke in her right hand and a bandage on her left arm. Seconds after they took Lena back, they came out asking Kara if any of Lena’s family were a match to donate blood to the girl because she had lost a lot. Fortunately, Kara knows she and Lena are the same blood type so she quickly informed them of that and they took some of her blood so they could give it to her wife. Kara was just so very thankful that she could do something to help.</p><p>Nia, Lucy, Maggie, and Alex are all sitting next to her at the moment. They look almost as broken as she does. None of them have spoken a word, they are all just staring blankly at the wall before them. Kara called Lucy as soon as she got to the hospital and she just kept saying "William" and "Lena" and "so much blood" over and over again and her best friend understood what was going on. When the girls arrived, they all just wrapped Kara in a hug and let her cry. </p><p>After the blonde drinks half of her soda, she sets it in the floor and lays her head on her sister's shoulder. It doesn't take long for her to fall asleep. Exactly 2 hours later, Kara jolts awake when a man in a white lab coat walks through the double doors and announces Lena’s name. Kara and Alex immediately walk up to him.</p><p>"How is she?" Kara asks while chewing nervously on her bottom lip.</p><p>"She's stable." The man answers. "She lost a lot of blood and her head injury was worse than we thought. She is still unconscious right now and all we can do is wait for her to wake up on her own. It may be a few hours or it maybe be a few days. Only time will tell.”</p><p>A few tears fall to Kara's cheeks as she nods her head. </p><p>"When can we see her?" Alex asks the question on the tip of both of their tongues as she wraps an arm around her sister’s shoulders.</p><p>"I can take one of you back now.” The doctor opens the door. Kara turns to Alex and the older girl nods her head in the direction of the door.</p><p>"We will be out here waiting. Go take care of your wife." Alex wipes at the tears on Kara’s cheeks and plants a quick kiss to her tan cheek. Kara just squeezes her sister’s hand and then follows the doctor down the ER hallway.</p><p>The sound of her own heart beating fills her ears as the man comes to a stop in front of a hospital room. Her stomach drops because she's not sure if she can handle seeing her wife in such a fragile state.</p><p>"I'll have a nurse come by to check on her every hour." The doctor smiles sadly at the blonde before patting her on the shoulder and walking away. Kara takes a deep breath and then slowly opens the door. Tears immediately well up in her eyes again when she steps closer to the hospital bed where Lena is laying. Kara pulls a chair up close to the bed and takes Lena’s cast covered hand in hers. She places a kiss on each of the girl's fingers before allowing her eyes to study her wife. There is a white bandage wrapped around Lena's head and there are black bruises under her eyes. Her arms are covered with bruises and scrapes and there's blood under her fingernails that Kara guesses is from scratching William anytime he was close.</p><p>"I'm sorry, baby." Kara chokes out. "I shouldn’t have drank so much at the wedding. I should’ve been in my apartment with you.” She places kiss after kiss on Lena’s red cast. She only turns her attention from Lena when she hears a knock at the door. Seconds later, two police officers enter.</p><p>"Are you Kara Luthor-Danvers?" One of them asks her.</p><p>"Yes." Kara nods in confirmation.</p><p>"We just want to let you know that we have William Dey in custody. We just need your statement about what happened tonight and your statement on your past encounters with him." The older man pulls out a notepad and Kara shares everything she knows with him. She tells him about the emotional and physical abuse he has inflicted on her and her wife. Once she finishes, they leave and Kara returns to Lena’s side.The hospital bed is fairly big so Kara slowly climbs in and settles next to the brunette. She lays on her side and props up on her elbow so that she can stare down at the woman who holds her heart.</p><p>"I love you so much." Kara releases a shaky breath. "God I wish it was me laying here instead of you." The musician admits as she traces Lena’s features with her fingertips, careful not to touch any part of her face that’s bandaged. She leans down and softly attaches her lips to Lena’s chapped ones. She allows her lips to linger on her wife's for a few moments before breaking the kiss and carefully draping her arm over the brunette's waist. Kara snuggles closer to her until her forehead is almost touching the side of Lena’s bandaged head.</p><p>"Please wake up, Lee." Kara pleads as her eyes start to get heavy. She flutters them closed moments later and falls into a deep slumber. Kara knows that she cannot see her favorite pair of green eyes in real life, but maybe, just maybe, she can see them in her dreams.</p><hr/><p>The blonde wakes up the next morning to the sound of hush whispers. She blinks her eyes open and rubs at the sleep in them with the back of her hand. She steals a glance at Lena, who unfortunately still has her eyes closed. She sighs and slides out of the bed.</p><p>“Hey, sleepy head.” Alex walks over to her and wraps her in a hug.</p><p>“Hey.” Kara rasps out. Her throat dry and sore from all the crying she did last night.</p><p>“Why don't you let me take you to my apartment and you can have a nice shower and change your clothes? I’ll bring you back as soon as you’re ready I promise.” Alex gives her sister a reassuring smile. </p><p>“You don’t want to smell like ass when Lena wakes up.” Maggie chimes in and Kara smiles. “I’ll watch her for you and I promise to call if anything changes.” Kara nods and walks over to Lena’s hospital bed. She bends down and plants a quick kiss to her wife’s lips before walking over to where her sister is standing by the door.</p><p>"Call me if anything changes." Kara says and Maggie just nods. Alex takes her sister’s hand and leads her out the door. The drive to the apartment is very quiet. The older sister turns the music on and Kara leans her head against the window. When they arrive, Kara quietly follows her sister into her apartment.</p><p>“Alright, you can go shower and I’ll lay you out a change of underwear and clothes on my bed for when you get out.” Alex offers the blonde a smile before leaving her in the bathroom alone.</p><p>"Thank you, sis." Kara whispers as Alex closes the bathroom door. She walks over to the shower and turns it on. After waiting a few seconds for it to warm up, she steps in and the hot water starts pouring over her body. The water at her feet starts to turn a light shade of red from the blood that was dried on her skin. She immediately grabs the soap and starts scrubbing her skin. The sight takes her back to when she saw Lena laying on the ground with blood pouring from her head. It’s not just any random person's blood going down the drain, it's her wife's.</p><p>Kara backs up against the wall of the shower and sinks to the floor of it. She wraps her arms around herself and starts sobbing. Minutes later, the shower turns off and Alex steps in the tub with her. She feels a towel wrap around her shoulders and then her sister wraps her arms around her. The older sister doesn't say a word, she just pulls the blonde onto her lap. Alex doesn't care if she's getting her clothes soaked. Comforting Kara is her number one priority right now.</p><p>"The love of my life is practically in a coma right now." Kara buries her head into her sister's neck. </p><p>“She’s going to wake up soon.” Alex runs her fingers through Kara’s wet locks to try to soothe her.</p><p>"This is my fault. She's in the hospital because of me and I hate myself for it." The blonde pulls her knees closer to her chest.</p><p>"Kara, you thought he was in jail and that you two were safe. This is William’s fault. You are not to blame and neither is Lena.” Alex assures the girl. "Lena wouldn't blame you for this. She loves you so much and wouldn't want you to blame yourself."</p><p>Kara just nods and allows Alex to help her out of the tub. After drying off, she throws on the clothes her sister had set out. Once she’s eaten a sandwich and dried her hair, she asks Alex to take her back to the hospital. </p><p>The blonde spends the next few hours at the hospital reading <em>To Kill a Mockingbird</em> out loud to her wife. Her left hand is holding the book and her right is playing with Lena's fingers. She gets to Chapter 13 in the book and smiles to herself as she thinks back to when Lena wrote <em>will you marry me?</em> on this exact page a couple of years ago. She places a quick kiss to Lena’s cast and then continues to read through Chapter 13.</p><p>"I know now what he was trying to do, but Atticus was only a man. It takes a woman to do that kind of work." She reads the last sentence of Chapter 13 and starts to continue on to Chapter 14, but freezes when she feels one of Lena’s fingers move. Kara immediately drops the book on the floor and hovers over the brunette.</p><p>"Baby, can you hear me?" Kara asks as tears fill her eyes. She reaches over and grabs Lena’s other hand and clasps her own tightly around it. "Lee, squeeze my hand if you can hear me." The blonde coaxes as she looks at their intertwined hands hopefully. Seconds later, she feels a light squeeze and a worry free smile graces her features.</p><p>Kara trails the back of her hand across her wife's still bruised cheek. "C'mon Lena, open your eyes. I'm here." She swears that her heart stops in her chest when she sees the brunette blink her eyes open. Butterflies invade her stomach when emerald eyes meet her own. Kara is speechless as she watches Lena’s eyes take in her surroundings and then settle on her again. "How do you feel? Are you in pain?" Kara quickly asks and Lena furrows her eyebrows.</p><p>"Who are you?" The brunette looks skeptically at the blue-eyed girl and Kara’s heart sinks to her stomach.</p><p>"Y-you don't remember? You don't know who I am?" Kara asks as tears well up in her eyes.</p><p>"Aren't you..." Lena snaps her fingers. "My incredibly sexy wife?" The brunette smiles groggily and Kara’s eyes widen in realization.</p><p>"Y-You..." The blonde stutters.</p><p>“I know who you are, darling. That was supposed to be a joke." Lena chuckles, her voice raspy.</p><p>"Lee, that's so not funny." A mixture between a laugh and a sob escapes Kara's lips and she quickly climbs into bed with her wife. She lays on her right side and uses her left hand to trace Lena’s soft features with her fingertips.</p><p>"I was so scared." Kara admits as tears pour down her cheeks. The green-eyed girl is quick to wipe them all away before they can fall to her shirt. "There was so much blood a-and a huge gash on your head." She chokes back a sob and Lena quickly wraps her arms around the girl and pulls Kara on top of her. The blue-eyed girl tucks her head in Lena’s neck while the brunette runs her hands through her wife's hair.</p><p>"Shh." Lena cooes as she places multiple kisses to her wife's temple. After Kara’s sobs seem to subside, Lena speaks up. “I’m here. I’m okay.” The brunette gently wipes away the tears that are slowly trailing down her wife's cheeks. “We are both okay."</p><p>Kara raises up again and props up on her arm so she can look down at her wife. "It should’ve been me instead. I shouldn’t have drank so much at the wedding.” Lena leans up and presses her lips to Kara’s to make the girl stop talking.</p><p>“First of all, don’t ever apologize for drinking. It’s okay to let loose. Second of all, we thought he was in jail. We couldn’t have known that he was out on bail.” Lena says sincerely. “Lastly, I’m glad it was me because if he had laid a hand on you I would be in jail right now for murder.”</p><p>“I love you. So much.” Kara looks tenderly at her wife.</p><p>"I love you too, darling.” Lena rubs the back of her wife’s neck with her thumb. Kara kisses the inside of Lena’s arm that is resting on her shoulder.</p><p>"Okay, babe, as much as I'd love to lay here all day with you, I need to tell the nurse that you're awake so she can check you out." Kara hesitantly stands up from the bed and Lena groans at the loss of contact.</p><p>"But the only person I want checking me out is you." Lena smirks.</p><p>“Smooth, Lee. Real smooth." The blonde chuckles as she exits the room in search of the nurse. Minutes later she returns with the same one that has been checking in on Lena frequently. The first thing she does is inject some pain medicine into her IV and then she examines the brunette, making sure to thoroughly check out her head and her stitches. After writing some notes on her clip board, she addresses the two girls.</p><p>"Well, Mrs. Luthor-Danvers, we do need to do another CT scan to make sure everything is okay before we send you home." She informs them both. ”Your stitches look great and we can send you home tomorrow once we get your CT scan done and get the results in." Lena nods. ”We will schedule an appointment for you to come back in a week for another check up and to get your stitches out. If you feel any pain, discomfort, or severe headaches, please make sure to come back in." The nurse offers the girls a warm smile.</p><p>"Thank you." Kara offers the nurse her hand and she shakes it.</p><p>"No problem. Take good care of her." She nods toward Lena.</p><p>"Always." Kara answers and the nurse pats her on the shoulder before exiting the room.</p><p>"Kara, I'm hungry." Lena stifles a yawn.</p><p>"Babe, I don't think you could stay awake long enough to eat. She gave you some pain meds that are about to knock you right out." Kara chuckles as she watches in adoration as Lena fights sleep. "How about this. How about I text Alex and tell her to bring you some pizza when they come? I texted her, Nia, and Lucy while the nurse was examining you and told them you were awake and to come in about two hours." Kara smiles affectionately as Lena’s head lulls forward and her eyes droop.</p><p>"Tell Alex I want spinach as a topping." Lena mumbles.</p><p>"I did, babe." The blue-eyed girl assures as she climbs in the bed beside her wife and pulls Lena into her. The second the brunette's head settles on Kara’s chest, she succumbs to sleep and soft snores fill the air.</p><p>"I love you, Lee." Kara whispers as she runs her fingers through Lena’s long brown locks. "I promise I won't ever let him hurt us again." The blonde promises her wife. It is a promise that she will keep. William will never hurt either of them again.</p><p>Kara knows she can't protect her wife from every danger in the world, but she does know that she will try her hardest to.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0034"><h2>34. Chapter 34</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"So what do you and Kara have planned for tonight?" Lucy asks as she plops down in a chair at the hospital.</p><p>"Lots and lots of sex." Lena smirks at her wife’s best friend.</p><p>Today is Valentine's Day and Lena and Lucy are currently sitting at the hospital waiting on a nurse to come and take all of the Lena’s stitches out. She still has the cast on her left hand for another couple of weeks, but it's time for the stitches to come out. The blue-eyed girl is playing a gig so she brought Lucy along so they could get some last minute Valentine's Day shopping done after they finish at the hospital.</p><p>"I hear that, Luthor. Ever since we moved into our own place, that's all Nia and I have been doing." Lucy rocks her eyebrows.</p><p>"Speaking of, when you two finish breaking in the new apartment, you need to invite us all over. We still want to see the new place." Lena reminds the girl. Before Lucy can answer, a nurse enters the room.</p><p>"Hello ladies." The nurse greets them and the two brunettes just smile warmly at her. “Here to get your stitches out?"</p><p>"I am.” Lena nods her head and the nurse starts the process.</p><p>It takes about 20 minutes to remove all the stitches from her head, but once it's over, the girls make their way back to Lucy's car. Lena studies her scarred skin as Lucy drives her to the mall. The brunette insisted that Lena go to Victoria's Secret and pick out a sexy pair of lingerie for tonight. Lena agreed that was probably a good idea considering she doesn't really own much lingerie. She usually just sleeps in flannel pants and an oversized t-shirt, but she wants to look good for her wife tonight.</p><p>When they enter the store, Lucy starts grabbing all the pairs of lingerie she thinks will fit Lena and shoves them in her hands so she can go try them on.</p><p>"Luthor! Come out and let me see them!" Lucy yells from the outside of the dressing room.</p><p>"I already told you no, Lucy!” Lena yells as she studies the lacy red lingerie that's covering her body... well barely covering her body. The bra is a push up bra so it makes her boobs look way bigger than they are. The panties are thin and in the back they are a thong. There is a lacy belt that goes around her stomach and the belt attaches to stockings that are covering her toned legs. Lena has to admit that she feels really sexy in it.</p><p>"Damn." Lucy says as she peeks over the top of the dressing room.</p><p>“Lucy!" Lena yells as she covers herself up.</p><p>"That's definitely the one." The brunette gives her a thumbs up. "When Kara sees you in this, she will probably have a heart attack before you two can even fuck."</p><p>"We aren't fucking, Lucy. We are making love." Lena corrects the girl and Lucy smiles.</p><p>"Such a sap." The brunette shakes her head as she steps down from the chair and exits the dressing room that is directly beside Lena’s. As soon as Lucy stops peeping, Lena takes the lingerie off and puts her own clothes back on. "Nia and I make love every night so tonight we are fucking. I think tonight we are using handcuffs for the first time and Nia told me she bought this whip that-"</p><p>"Nope!" Lena walks out of the dressing room and presses her finger to the brunette’s lips in order to halt her talking. "Don't even finish that sentence. I have no desire to hear about the kinky shit that you two are going to do tonight." She shakes her head as she walks to the check out and places the lingerie on top of the counter. After paying for it, the two make their way to the grocery store so Lena can get the ingredients for the dinner she's making Kara tonight. The two decided a couple of days ago that they would just stay in for Valentine's Day and cuddle while watching romantic movies.</p><p>After they both get everything they need at the store, Lucy drops the green-eyed girl back off at her apartment and Lena gets to work on fixing up the apartment, the food, and herself. She immediately places the lingerie in the washer so it will be ready for tonight and then starts preparing the homemade potstickers. Once she finishes with those, she gets started on making the chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. After the food is finished, she starts spreading rose petals all over the floor from the door to the bedroom and all over the bed. Luckily, Alex and Maggie agreed to watch Kieran for the night so the two girls could have the apartment to themselves. Next, she lights tons of candles around the apartment and turns off most of the lights so that the candles can illuminate the whole place. After finishing decorating the apartment, Lena checks the time. 4:00 pm. She knows Kara’s gig won’t be finished until about 4:30, which is good because it gives her time to make sure tonight is perfect. She said she would be home by 5 so that gives Lena an hour to get herself ready.</p><p>The brunette retrieves the red lingerie from the dryer and slips it back on for the second time today. She curls her brown locks and sprays lots of hairspray to keep them in place. She covers her body with vanilla scented lotion and spritzes some perfume on her neck. Next, she focuses on her makeup. After putting the finishing touches on it, she grabs a tube of red lipstick and paints it on her plump lips.</p><p>She hears her phone ding and grabs it to see that Lucy has texted her a photo. She clicks on the photo and sees that it’s a picture of her and Nia's bed with handcuffs dangling from the headboard. Lena just chuckles and walks into their bedroom so she can take a picture of their bed that's now littered with rose petals. She sends it to Lucy before putting her phone on silent so there won't be any interruptions tonight.</p><p>Since it's almost 5 and Kara should be home soon, she throws on a silk robe and brings the chocolate covered strawberries and bottle of wine into the bedroom and sets them down on the dresser next to her phone. When she hears the door handle to the apartment jiggle, she stands up from the bed and stands in the doorway of the room she now shares with her wife.</p><p>"Honey, I'm home!" Kara yells, oblivious to the fact that Lena is standing by the bedroom door watching her. Lena watches in adoration as Kara sets her guitar case by the door and lays her phone and a bouquet of roses on the table beside the door so she can check her appearance in the mirror hanging on the wall. Once she's finished, she spins around and locks eyes with Lena.</p><p>"Happy Valentine's Day, darling." The brunette husks as she slowly unties her robe and lets it fall to the floor by her feet. She smirks when Kara’s jaw falls too. The musician makes no attempt to move so Lena slowly crosses the room and grabs her wife's hand and brings it to her lips.</p><p>“H-Holy wow." Kara stutters and Lena leans in to kiss her. She moves her lips slowly against Kara’s and savors the way that her wife tastes. When Lena pulls back, she notices Kara staring at her head.</p><p>“I forgot that you were getting your stitches out today." Kara smiles tenderly at her wife and leans in to brush her lips over the adhesive strips that replaced the stitches. She trails her nose down the bridge of Lena's until she reaches her lips. The blonde bends down and places her hands on the backs of Lena’s thighs, signaling for her to wrap them around her own waist. Lena obliges and Kara carries her into their bedroom, their lips still moving sensually against each others.</p><p>As soon as they are in the room, Kara carefully lays her down in the middle of the bed and gets on top of her. The brunette wastes no time in ridding Kara of all of her clothes. When the blonde is naked, she pulls back and looks into her wife's eyes.</p><p>"All of this looks phenomenal baby." The blue-eyed girl looks around the room at the rose petals and the candles before turning her attention back to Lena’s body. She licks her lips before leaning down and leaving a trail of wet kisses up her stomach to her red lips. "And you look so fucking sexy." Lena leans up and attaches their lips together again and Kara starts taking the lingerie off her wife. As sexy as it is, seeing her wife completely nude is much more appealing to the blue-eyed girl. Once they are both naked, Kara presses her body all the way into Lena’s and moans when their breasts touch.</p><p>Lena switches their positions so that she’s the one straddling Kara. ”You are beautiful." The green-eyed girl whispers as she looks into her wife’s ocean eyes.</p><p>"I wish that were true, but all of these freaking scars are so-" Kara starts, but Lena cuts her off.</p><p>"Beautiful. They are beautiful." Lena interrupts her as she brings her hand up to Kara’s face to caress her tan cheek. When her wife still doesn't look convinced, Lena presses her lips to every visible scar on her wife’s body. "These scars don't make you any less beautiful, darling. They only make me love you more. To me, you will always be the sexiest woman to ever walk the face of this earth." Lena moves her lips to the girl's neck and sucks lightly on her pulse point. "I love you so much." She places one final kiss on the blonde’s nose before reattaching their lips.</p><p>"You make me feel beautiful, Lee." Kara mumbles against her wife's lips.</p><p>"I will always be here to remind you that you are the most beautiful woman that I've ever laid eyes on. I will tell you every single second of every single day until you finally believe it yourself." The brunette whispers before trailing kisses down Kara’s body until her head is in between the blonde's legs.</p><hr/><p>Once they've both had two orgasms, Lena rolls off Kara and snuggles up to the girl as she tries to catch her breath. Once her breathing is back to normal, Lena stands up from the bed and Kara pouts at the loss of contact.</p><p>"Stay here." She instructs her wife as she makes her way into the kitchen. She fixes two plates of potstickers and grabs two glasses for the wine. When she returns to the room, she lays the tray of food down on the bed and opens the wine so she can pour them both some.</p><p>"Aw baby, you made my favorite!" Kara squeals as she takes a plate of food from the tray. Lena just nods as she hands her wife a glass of wine.</p><p>"You deserve to have the best Valentine's Day, darling. I hope this all isn't too lame." Lena ducks her head and Kara immediately sits up on her knees. She sets her glass on the bedside table so she can hook a finger under Lena’s chin and look into her eyes.</p><p>"All of this is so incredible, babe." Kara traces her thumb across her wife's bottom lip. "You are so beyond incredible and I am so lucky to have such an amazing wife."</p><p>"I love you, Kara." The brunette leans in and presses a kiss to her wife's forehead.</p><p>"I love you more." Kara smiles before crawling back to her spot on the bed and taking a bite of her food. "Now let's eat. I'm starved."</p><p>Lena chuckles as she joins her wife on their bed. They eat in silence, both of them famished from the sex. After they both finish their dinner, Lena grabs the chocolate covered strawberries. Kara insists on feeding almost half of them to her wife. Lena loves the goofy grin that spreads across her wife's face when she "accidentally" gets the chocolate all over her face. Once the last strawberry is eaten and Kara has kissed away all the chocolate on Lena’s face, the green-eyed girl grabs her wife's fingers and sucks all of the chocolate off of them. This results in both of them getting turned on again. They spend the next hour having more sex, Kara straddling Lena’s thigh with her knee pressed firmly into her wife's core. It doesn't take them long to come undone for the third time.</p><p>They lay tangled together, just listening to each other's heartbeats for most of the night after recovering from their third orgasm. Lena is on the verge of falling asleep, but is woken up when Kara abruptly stands up from the bed and walks into the living room. She returns with the bouquet of red roses and hands them to her wife.</p><p>"For you." Kara says shyly and Lena grabs the roses and brings them to her nose so she can smell them.</p><p>"They are beautiful, darling." Lena sets them down on the bed beside her. "I got you roses, but they are umm scattered all over the apartment."</p><p>"I saw that. I have to admit that my flowers looked really good stuck to your body as we made love three times." Kara winks at her wife and Lena blushes as she looks down at all the rose petals that are still stuck to her body. </p><p>"I know we said we wouldn't get each other anything big this Valentine's Day because of the amount of money we've spent on hospital bills, but I do want to give you something." Lena says and Kara immediately groans because she didn't get her wife anything. Lena just leans in and kisses the pout off of her lips before reaching up to her own neck and undoing the necklace. Kara watches as she slides the ring off of the chain and holds it up between them. "I believe this belongs to you."</p><p>Kara nods as tears start to stream down her tan cheeks. Lena picks up her wife's left hand and places a quick kiss to her knuckles before sliding the wedding ring back on the blonde’s ring finger.</p><p>"I told you I'd keep it safe for you until you wanted it back." Lena leans down and places a kiss on the ring that is now resting on Kara’s finger. "I hope that you do in fact want it back." She chuckles nervously and the blonde looks up from the ring to meet Lena’s eyes.</p><p>"Of course I want it back, Lee. I want to wear it everyday for the rest of my life so the world knows I'm yours." The blonde leans in and softly kisses her wife's lips. "God, my finger has felt so naked without this on."</p><p>"The man at the pawn shop let me have it for free after I broke down and told him the story of how it ended up there." Lena admits and Kara smiles sadly at her wife.</p><p>"Remind me to go by and thank this generous man. I love that there are still good people left in this world." Kara whispers as she admires the diamond on her finger. "I also love you and Kieran and the life we have created together."</p><p>"I love you too, darling." Lena kisses her wife's nose. "To the moon and back."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0035"><h2>35. Chapter 35</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"How does it feel to finally have your cast off, babe?" Kara asks as she reaches over the console of the car and intertwines her right hand with Lena's left.</p><p>"I feel free again. I love it." The brunette smiles as she rubs her thumb across the back of Kara’s hand.</p><p>"You sure you feel up for going to the beach?" Kara glances over at her wife briefly before returning her attention to the road again.</p><p>"Yeah." Lena looks out the window. "It's been a while since we've had a beach day. I think the last time we were all here was when we found Kieran and now look at him." Lena points to the back seat of the car where Kieran is hanging his head out the window. "He's gotten so big."</p><p>Kara looks in the rear-view mirror at the dog and chuckles when she sees his tongue flapping in the wind. "I'm looking forward to spending the day with you two and the other girls." The blonde brings their intertwined hands up to her lips and places a kiss to the back of her wife's hand. After a couple of more minutes of riding, they finally pull up to the public beach. Once Kara puts the car in park, she scrambles out of the car and opens the back door so Kieran can get out too.</p><p>"Race you to the beach, bud!" Kara looks toward the canine before taking off in the direction of the ocean. Kieran doesn't hesitate to follow suit and Lena just fondly shakes her head at the two before grabbing their beach bags and towels out of the car. Once she is loaded down with everything, she makes her way to the beach and chuckles when she finds her wife dusting sand off of her body.</p><p>"I think you are supposed to play in it, not wear it, darling." Lena fights back a smile when she sees that her wife is covered from head to toe in it.</p><p>"Hilarious." Kara retorts while narrowing her eyes playfully at her wife. "Our son here decided to cut in front of me while we were racing and trip me. Such foul play."</p><p>Lena’s heart leaps in her chest when she hears Kara say 'our son.' She looks lovingly at her wife and smiles when she pictures their future together. She knows Kara would be an amazing mother and she can't wait to start a family with her someday. Speaking of kids, the green-eyed girl is broken from her thoughts when Kieran saunters up to her and nudges her hand with his nose.</p><p>"Hey, buddy." She says while reaching her hand out to scratch the dog behind his ears. "I see that you unfairly won the race against your mom, huh?"</p><p>"Mmhmm." Kara mumbles as she grabs the hem of her shirt and pulls it over her head. She places it in her beach bag before sliding her blue jean shorts down her toned legs and placing them on top of her shirt. She retrieves her and Lena’s towels from their bag and spreads them out on the beach. Next, she grabs the sunscreen and sits down on her towel so she can start coating her arms and legs with it. "Baby, can you do my back?" She looks over at Lena and bites her lip when she sees her wife shimmying out of her own shorts. Kara moves her sunglasses down the bridge of her nose and whistles. "Damn, ma, lemme get them digits."</p><p>Lena just laughs while shaking her head at her wife. She sits down on her own towel before turning her attention back toward the beautiful blonde beside her. "I'm sorry, miss, but I'm married." The green-eyed girl extends her left hand to Kara and the blonde just smirks.</p><p>"That's a shame." Kara husks as she crawls across the sand to her wife's towel. She immediately straddles Lena and wraps her arms loosely around the girl's neck. "I could show you a real good time."</p><p>Lena feels the space between her legs start to heat up and she leans in and captures Kara’s lips in her own. She moves her hand up and places it on the nape of the blue-eyed girl's neck and tugs lightly at the hairs that are there. When Kara moans, Lena darts her tongue into her wife's mouth and explores the familiar territory.</p><p>"You know, most people just order the drink Sex on the Beach, they don't actually have sex on the beach." Both girls break away when they hear a familiar voice and look up to see Lucy hovering over them with a smirk plastered on her face.</p><p>"Way to kill the mood, Luce." Kara huffs as she stands up and sits in front of Lena with her back facing toward the girl. The brunette grabs the bottle of sunscreen that's sitting on Kara’s towel and squirts some on her palm. She rubs her hands together in attempt to warm the substance before rubbing it on her wife’s tan back. When she's finished, she places a kiss to the back of the blonde’s neck and puts the sunscreen away. "Thanks, love." Kara turns around and places a kiss to Lena’s lips before standing up and laying on her own towel so she can start sunbathing.</p><p>About 30 minutes later, Lena stands up from her towel and turns to her wife. "I'm going to cool off in the ocean with the girls and then go to the bar to get a drink. Want anything?"</p><p>Kara props up on her elbows and looks up at her wife. "I can go grab us drinks while you go take a dip. What do you want?"</p><p>"I'll take a daiquiri. Thank you, beautiful." Lena grabs her wallet out of her bag and hands it to her wife. She quickly places a kiss to the girl's sweaty forehead before motioning for Kieran to follow her to the water. Kara bites her lip as she watches her wife strut toward the ocean, her hips swaying sensually. </p><p><em>Dang, I'm a lucky girl,</em> Kara thinks as she stands up from the towel and starts walking to the beach bar. When she gets to the counter, she studies the drink menu and decides that she wants a daiquiri as well.</p><p>"Two strawberry daiquiris please." She says while digging in the wallet for Lena’s credit card.</p><p>"She does know it's not Halloween yet, doesn't she?" A blonde boy behind the counter whispers to the boy beside him. When Kara looks up, she sees them both pointing at her body. She immediately wraps her arms around herself to try and cover up the visible scars lining her body. She’s been self conscious about them since she was attacked and to have someone point them out and laugh is mortifying. She keeps her head ducked and waits on them to finish making her drinks.</p><p>"That all for today, Frankenstein?" The other boy pipes up as he places the two drinks on the counter in front of Kara. The blonde feels tears start to sting her eyes when she hears them both snicker. Instead of handing them the credit card, she grabs the drinks and throws the liquid in their faces. The boys immediately stop laughing as the red liquid drips from their faces to the front of their shirts.</p><p>“Be better." Kara spits before turning around and walking back to her towel. She looks out into the ocean and sees her wife, Kieran, and the other girls playing in the water. Kara hastily wipes away the tears pouring down her cheeks with the back of her hands before throwing on her shirt and grabbing Lena’s car keys.</p><p>The green-eyed girl just so happens to look back to the shore just in time to see her wife throw on her shirt and grab the car keys from her bag. "Watch Kieran please." She addresses Lucy and Nia before quickly making her way out of the water and running as fast as she can to catch up to her wife. Once she catches her, Lena steps in front of the girl and sees that she has tears streaming down her face. "Darling, what happened? What's wrong?" The green-eyed girl asks as she looks her wife over to see if she's hurt anywhere. Kara just shakes her head and chokes back a sob. Lena quickly pulls the girl into her arms and trails her right hand up and down Kara’s back in a soothing manner. "What happened, Kara?” Lena pulls back from the hug, but keeps both of her hands on her wife's shoulders.</p><p>"Nothing I'm fine." Kara just waves her hand dismissively and steps past Lena so she can keep making her way to the car. "I just shouldn't have come here today. My body is too ugly for me to be wearing a swimsuit." She mumbles to herself, but it's just loud enough for Lena to hear. The green-eyed girl's heart breaks in her chest as she watches Kara walk slowly to the car and climb in it. The brunette quickly walks over and opens up the passenger door. She gently takes the keys from Kara’s hands.</p><p>"I'll be right back, okay?" Lena leans over her wife and cranks the car. Once it roars to life, she turns the air on full blast and places a lingering kiss to Kara’s temple. "Stay here, I'll just be a second." She mumbles, her lips still pressed to her wife's head. When Kara nods solemnly, Lena shuts the car door and makes her way back to the beach. She immediately walks to the bar and sees two boys behind the counter. They both are wiping at red stains on their white shirts and Lena immediately knows they are the ones that upset her wife.</p><p>"What did you say to her?" Lena slams her hands down on the bar and both boys jump.</p><p>"I don't know what you're-" One of the boys tries to speak up, but Lena cuts him off.</p><p>"What the fuck did you say to the blonde that just left the bar?" She reaches across the counter and grabs them both by the collars of their shirts so she can tug them closer to her face.</p><p>"We j-just cracked a few jokes and told her she looked like Frankenstein t-that's it." The blonde boy pipes up and Lena scoffs before letting go of their shirts with so much haste that it causes them both to stumble backwards.</p><p>"She was fucking attacked!" Lena screams and both boys swallow nervously. "And now she's crying in the car because she thinks she's too ugly to be in a swimsuit."</p><p>Both boys start to speak up, but Lena just holds up her hand to signal for them to stop.</p><p>"I will be contacting your manager and you two will be losing your jobs. Have a nice fucking life, assholes." The green-eyed girl rolls her eyes at the two of them before walking back to where her and Kara’s stuff is laying on the beach.</p><p>"What was all of that about, Luthor?" Lucy speaks up as she watches Lena start to gather all of their belongings.</p><p>"I'll call you and tell you about it later, but I need to get back to Kara." Lena says as she angrily shoves their belongings back into their bags.</p><p>"Lena, why don't you go ahead and drive Kara home and we will take your stuff and Kieran home with us." Nia offers as she places a comforting hand on the brunette’s arm in attempt to stop her movements. Lena nods her head and offers the girl a small, but grateful, smile.</p><p>"Thank you, guys. I'll come over tonight and get him and our stuff." She pulls her shirt over her head and says her goodbyes. When she gets back to the car, she sees that Kara has her head resting on the window. Lena slides into the driver's seat and her heart breaks when she sees that Kara is still crying silently to herself.</p><p>The green-eyed girl reaches her right hand over and gently caresses her wife's tear-stained cheek with the back of her hand. "You are the most beautiful person I've ever met. Inside and out." She whispers and watches as a small smile graces Kara’s features.</p><p>"People started to look at me differently after the attack. Most people just look at me like I'm damaged and others look at me like I'm some freak that should only come out on Halloween night." Kara sighs as she runs her fingers through her hair.</p><p>"Look at me, baby." Lena coaxes and smiles softly when Kara’s eyes meet her own. "You are not the opinion of someone who doesn't know you." The green-eyed girl rubs her thumb back and forth across Kara’s tan cheek. "And you are not damaged just because you've been through more trials and tribulations than other people have. I love every part of you. Every single scar. I absolutely adore every aspect of you."</p><p>Kara just nods and leans in so she can capture Lena’s lips in her own. She softly kisses the green-eyed girl until her own tears subside. The brunette keeps kissing her wife until Kara pulls away and when she does, Lena puts the car in drive and drives them both back home. The green-eyed girl pulls out her phone and hooks it up to the aux cord. She keeps scrolling until she finds the song she wants to play and when she finds it, she presses play and sets her phone in the cup holder.</p><p>Lena grabs Kara’s hands in hers and brings it up to her lips. Not seconds later, "Scars To Your Beautiful" by Alessia Cara fills both of their ears and Kara looks over at her wife and smiles warmly at her. They both sing every word to the song and the brunette just prays that the beautiful girl next to her will one day see herself the way that Lena sees her and will one day love herself the way that Lena loves her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0036"><h2>36. Chapter 36</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ever since the beach incident, Kara had been down and out. It hurt Lena to see her like that and when Alex suggested that they all six get away from National City for a bit, they all agreed that was a good idea. Eliza offered to come to National City to dog sit for them and once she arrived, they all set off on their road trip. All of them knew they were going to Disneyland, but Kara.</p>
<p>Currently, Lucy, Nia, Kara, and Lena are in a car on their way to Anaheim, California. Maggie and Alex are leading the way in their own car. For the first half of the road trip, Kara refuses to relax until they tell her where they are taking her. However, when she realizes none of the girls will spoil the surprise, she gives up, lays her head on Lena’s shoulder, and drifts off into a deep slumber. She stays asleep for the rest of the drive and Lena is glad for this because Kara’s nightmares have been preventing her from getting a good night's sleep lately. When Lena hears Kara’s breathing even out, she places a kiss to the top of her head and picks up one of her girl's hands so she can intertwine it with her own.</p>
<p>A few hours later, the girls arrive at their destination. When they get to Anaheim, Lena peppers kisses all over Kara’s face, effectively waking her up from her nap. "Baby, stop." Kara groans when she feels Lena’s lips kiss every inch of her face. "Let a girl sleep." The blonde fake pouts, but a smile breaks through when the green-eyed girl places a gentle kiss to the tip of her nose.</p>
<p>“We're here, darling." Lena whispers and Kara perks up and looks out the window of the vehicle.</p>
<p>"And where is here exactly?" Kara inquires as she tries to make sense of her surroundings.</p>
<p>"See for yourself." Lena smirks as she points out her window. Kara scoots over to Lena’s side again and presses her face to the glass so she can see what her wife is pointing at. As soon as her eyes make contact with the sign that reads "Disneyland" she screams so loud that it causes Lucy to slam on her breaks.</p>
<p>"Jesus, Kar! Some of us are trying to drive here!" Lucy scoffs in fake annoyance as she presses the gas pedal again. Luckily, there weren't any cars behind them so they weren’t hit from behind.</p>
<p>"I can't believe you guys brought me to Disneyland!" Kara plops herself in Lena’s lap and wraps her arms around her wife's neck.</p>
<p>"I wanted to take you somewhere fun, somewhere that would make you happy." Lena reaches up and caresses Kara’s cheek. "And I knew that nothing would make you happier than visiting the happiest place on earth."</p>
<p>"You know me so well." Kara smiles tenderly at Lena before leaning in and capturing her lips in her own.</p>
<p>"Well it wasn't that hard to figure out, Kar. You literally used to force me to have Disney movie marathons with you every weekend." Lucy chimes in.</p>
<p>Kara chuckles and scoots off Lena’s lap so she can lean up to the front seat and place a sloppy kiss on Lucy’s cheek. While the brunette tries to wipe the slobber from her cheek, Kara reaches around and wraps her arms around her best friend's neck.</p>
<p>"You loved those marathons and you know it." Kara smirks and Lucy just swats at the girl's arms playfully.</p>
<p>As soon as they arrive at their hotel, all six girls quickly unload their suitcases into their rooms and then Kara drags them all to the park so she can see the castle. None of the girls object because they know that this trip is for the blonde so they all plan to do what she wants the entire time.</p>
<p>When they enter the park, the blue-eyed girl eagerly navigates her way to the castle. Lena, Nia, Lucy, Alex, and Maggie have to literally run to keep up with the blonde. By the time they get to their destination, all the girls, except for Kara, are doubled over trying to catch their breath. Kara, however, just skips as close as she can get to the castle, Lena at her heels.</p>
<p>"Lee, look!" Kara’s eyes light up as she takes in her surroundings. “It’s even prettier in person." The blonde sighs contently.</p>
<p>"Lets go explore, baby." Lena whispers as she wraps an arm around Kara’s shoulders. The green-eyed girl allows Kara to lead her into every shop, and she finds that it is impossible to say no to the girl when she says she wants to buy something. Currently, Lena is holding a sack with tons of Disney themed clothes in it, a sack with lots of candy in it, and has a churro in each hand. The brunette is currently waiting patiently for Kara to return from the bathroom. They have currently been in the park for 3 hours now, and it's just the two of them because Nia, Lucy, Alex, and Maggie left about an hour ago to go grab a bite to eat.</p>
<p>Lena can't help but swoon when she sees her wife exit the bathroom wearing her Mickey ears. She's such a dork and Lena fucking loves that about her. "C'mon, lets go get in line for Space Mountain!" The blonde says as she takes her churro from her wife's hand. Lena just nods and lets the girl lead her to the ride. The brunette loves her wife so much that she is willing to wait in line for the ride for 3 hours and without complaining once. Kara, of course, knows that she has the greatest wife in the entire world. That is why she makes sure to tell the green-eyed girl over and over again how thankful she is for this trip and how thankful she is that Lena has been patient with her while she's explored the theme park.</p>
<p>When they exit Space Mountain, it's past closing time and Kara is reluctant to leave. It literally takes a security guard coming up to them and demanding that they leave for her to actually go. Unfortunately for Kara, her signature puppy dog eyes do not work on the security guard like they work on Lena. </p>
<p>The next day, all six of the girls explore Universal Studios for the majority of the day. Currently, it's the morning of their last day in Anaheim. The group decided that they wanted to spend the day exploring some of the beaches around the area. Lena left the hotel room in search of breakfast and Kara is in the bathroom preparing for her shower. She slowly slips off her pajamas and lets them fall to the floor. After sliding off her wedding ring and setting it on the sink, she steps in the shower. When the hot water connects with her skin she lets out a moan. Kara hears the bathroom door creak open as she is washing the shampoo from her hair and she pauses her movements for a second because Lena should not be back this soon.</p>
<p>"Lena?" She yells, her voice laced with panic. When no one replies, she backs up against the shower wall and mentally prepares herself for the possibility that she may have to fight off an attacker naked and with some shampoo still in her hair. She hears footsteps enter the bathroom and she starts to give herself a pep talk about how she is a strong, independent woman who is more than capable of defending herself, even in the nude. However, when the footsteps get closer to the shower, she realizes the pep talk did not help because she is fucking terrified. When the shower curtain is pulled back, she lets out a screech and holds her fists up.</p>
<p>"Woah there, Rocky. Lower the fists." Kara hears her favorite husky voice and her shoulders relax. Lena enters the shower with her wife, a playful smirk on her face.</p>
<p>"Lena!" Kara shoves her wife. "You scared the crap out of me! I thought I was about to have to fight for my life while naked!"</p>
<p>The amused look on Lena’s features doesn't fade as she steps closer to her wife, who is still backed up against the wall. "I mean you can always fight me naked if you want." Lena kinks an eyebrow up. "I don't like it too rough, no punching, but I could be down for some biting and scratching if you want. If you're into it, I'm into it." The green-eyed girl whispers as she runs her thumb over Kara’s bottom lip. Only Lena can make Kara go from very terrified to very turned on in like a span of 10 seconds.</p>
<p>Kara launches herself in her wife's arms and their tongues battle for dominance as they both stand under the warm stream of water. Lena bites down on Kara’s bottom lip and when the blonde moans, Lena quickly turns her around and gently presses her front up against the shower wall. In one swift motion, the green-eyed girl removes the shower head and maneuvers it so the water is directly hitting the sensitive nub between Kara’s legs. The blue-eyed girl lets out a loud moan and leans her head back so that it is resting on Lena’s shoulder. The brunette presses a kiss to Kara’s head before moving her lips to her ear. She lightly blows on the shell of it before taking her ear lobe into her mouth and sucking on it.</p>
<p>"Oh my god, Lee, that feels so..." Kara’s voice trails off because her orgasm is quickly approaching and her mind cannot seem to form any coherent thoughts. Sensing that her wife is close, Lena kisses down Kara’s neck until she reaches the spot that she knows will send her wife over the edge.</p>
<p>"Let go, baby." Lena says as she snakes her left arm around her wife's waist and pulls Kara’s backside impossibly closer to her front. She attaches her lips to Kara’s neck and sucks on her pulse point. This sends the blonde over the edge and her body convulses in Lena’s arms. Sensing that Kara’s legs are about to give out, Lena tightens her grip on the girl to hold her in place and puts the shower head back in its original place.</p>
<p>"Wow." Is all Kara can say as she turns around in Lena’s arms.</p>
<p>The brunette reaches up and wipes the blonde’s wet hair away from her face.</p>
<p>"I love it when you moan my name." Lena says as she leans in and brushes her lips against her wife's.</p>
<p>"Now I want to hear you moan mine." Kara says as she drops to her knees.</p>
<p>The two girls spend another half hour in the shower, only deciding to get out when the water turns from hot to cold.</p>
<p>All the girls load up in their cars after they are all dressed in their beach attire and head to the ocean, which is about an half hour drive from their hotel. When they finally arrive, all of them pile out of their cars and walk to the sand to start spreading out their beach towels. As soon as Lena peels her shirt over her head, she immediately extends the suntan lotion to her wife, silently asking if she will put some on her.</p>
<p>"So needy." Kara playfully rolls her eyes while her wife lays face down on her beach towel. The blonde straddles her wife's backside and starts rubbing suntan lotion all over her pale back. When her hands connect with her skin and she looks down, she immediately realizes that her wedding ring is not on her left finger.</p>
<p>"Crap crap crap." Kara panics as she crawls off of Lena and stands up abruptly. Lena turns over immediately and stares up at her wife.</p>
<p>"Kara, what is it?" The green-eyed girl questions.</p>
<p>"My wedding ring." Kara runs her hands through her hair in frustration. "I-I took it off to take a shower and I must have forgotten to put it back on." The blonde starts pacing in the sand. "What if it went down the drain or what if someone goes in our room and takes it?" Lena stands up and faces her wife. She gently places her hands on her shoulders to stop her pacing.</p>
<p>"Breathe, darling." Lena leans in and places a tender kiss to her wife's forehead. "I'll go and call the hotel, okay? Try not to worry your pretty little mind about it." Kara nods solemnly and watches as her wife grabs her cover up, walks up the beach, and enters a shop about 100 feet away. Kara decides to build a sandcastle to keep herself busy. However, when 30 minutes pass and there is still no sign of Lena, the blonde stands up, dusts herself off, and walks toward the shop that she watched her wife enter.</p>
<p>Upon arriving to the shop, she notices that the lights are off inside. She furrows her eyebrows and opens the door anyway. She steps into the dark room and flips on the light switch that sits at the left hand side of the door. When the lights turn on, Kara gasps. The entire room is empty, except for the walls, which are filled with beautiful paintings that she knows were created by her lovely wife.</p>
<p>The blonde looks around the room, but there's no sign of Lena. However, Kara knows she set this up so she knows she isn't too far away. Deciding that the beautiful paintings in front of her need to be admired from close up, she abandons her spot by the door and walks to stand in front of the first painting. Her eyes soak up every detail of each of the 9 paintings and the beautiful words written under each of them.</p>
<p>The first painting is the cover of <em>To Kill A Mockingbird</em> with <em>I loved you the moment I laid eyes on you</em> written underneath.</p>
<p>The second painting is a picture of the two of them at The 1975 concert and <em>I will never want somebody else</em> is written under it.</p>
<p>The third painting is a picture of the two of them at the wedding reception that they crashed. The caption is <em>Your smile lights up my entire world.</em></p>
<p>The fourth painting brings tears to Kara’s eyes. A picture of the two of them on their wedding day is painted on the canvas. <em>You agreeing to be my wife was the best thing to ever happen to me</em> is written underneath it.</p>
<p>The one next to it is a painting representing the day the two of them were separated. It’s similar to the one Kara admired at Lena’s art exhibit. Under the painting is the caption: <em>Losing you was the worst thing to ever happen to me.</em></p>
<p>The sixth painting is one of Kara the day they were reunited. <em>But luckily fate brought you back to me</em> is written under it. </p>
<p>Kara’s heart soars at the seventh painting. Kieran’s face is on the canvas with the caption <em>Fate also brought us a fur baby that I absolutely adore</em> underneath it.</p>
<p>The eighth painting makes the tears clouding her eyes fall to her cheeks. The canvas has seven words written on it: <em>I want to marry you again, Kara.</em></p>
<p>The next canvas has a group picture of them and all their friends painted on it. The caption reads: <em>I want to say "I do" and promise you forever while surrounded by our closest friends and family.</em></p>
<p>As soon as it dawns on Kara that there are no more paintings, she hears her favorite voice fill the silence. "So what do you say?" When she turns around, she sees her favorite person down on one knee in front of her. "Will you do me the honor of marrying me... again?"</p>
<p>And though her throat is thick with emotion, Kara still manages to whisper the one word that Lena has been waiting to hear since she realized that she wanted her and Kara to renew their vows.</p>
<p>"Yes."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0037"><h2>37. Chapter 37</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"So what do you think?" Kara asks as she steps out from the dressing room. She is wearing a beautiful lace wedding gown and she smirks when she watches Alex’s jaw practically hit the floor.</p>
<p>"That's the one." The older sister stands up and circles around Kara so she can get a better look at the beautiful gown. "I've seriously never seen a prettier dress.”</p>
<p>"This one makes me feel like a princess." The blonde whispers, a small smile playing at her lips as she takes in every detail of the dress she is wearing.</p>
<p>"You're marrying the woman who makes you feel like a princess, so I think it's only fitting that you buy the dress that makes you feel like a princess." Alex responds and tears well up in Kara’s eyes. "Sis, don't get all emotional on me now. Save that shit for the wedding."</p>
<p>Kara laughs before turning around to face Alex. "I guess I'm just really really happy. I'm happy that I have a woman who wants to marry me twice in a lifetime and I'm happy that we have amazing friends and family that we get to share the beautiful day with."</p>
<p>"I'm so happy that I get to be there.” Alex grabs her sister’s hand and gives it a squeeze.</p>
<p>"Speaking of..." Kara runs back into her dressing room and leaves Alex out in the store very confused. Kara emerges from the dressing room seconds later with a brown box in her hands. She extends the box to Alex and the older sister takes it from her.</p>
<p>"It better be money." Alex says as she shakes the box. "Or a gift card to Starbucks." Kara playfully rolls her eyes.</p>
<p>"Just open the dang box already, Alex." Kara shakes her head as she taps her foot impatiently. Finally, Alex takes the top off the small box and reveals what is inside. "I want you to be my maid of honor." The blue-eyed girl speaks up as soon as she's sure her sister has had time to see what is inside. The older sister launches herself at the blonde and wraps her up in a hug.</p>
<p>"My baby sister is getting married." Alex sniffles.</p>
<p>"So is that a yes or..." Kara chuckles as she pats Alex’s back.</p>
<p>"Of fucking course. Not just a yes, but a hell yes." Alex tightens her hold on her sister.</p>
<p>“I love you." Kara mumbles before stepping away from the hug and backing into the dressing room.</p>
<p>“Love you more.” Alex replies while Kara slips out of the dress and puts back on her clothes.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Lena is trying on dresses at a bridal store on the opposite side of National City. None of their friends would let the two of them go to the same bridal shop and even though they really wanted to dress shop together, they understood. Their friends kept telling them that it's bad luck to see the bride in the dress before the wedding.</p>
<p>"I think this may be the one. What do you guys think?" Lena chews on her bottom lip nervously as she steps out of the dressing room. This is the thirteenth dress she's tried on today. She has not had much luck today and was about to give up and go home, but the thirteenth dress made a huge grin appear on her face.</p>
<p>"Lena, it's gorgeous! It looks amazing on you!" Sam stands up from the chair and walks to the brunette.</p>
<p>"Holy shit, Lena!" Andrea stands up as well and grabs Lena’s hand signaling for her to spin around once. The green-eyed girl does and the quick spin allows both the girls to take in the beauty of the whole dress.</p>
<p>"I really really love it." The bride-to-be gushes as she turns back around to face the mirror. The brunette fluffs her hair and pushes up her boobs a bit to get the full effect.</p>
<p>"If you push em up anymore they are gonna fall out, dude." Sam snorts and Lena turns around and swats at her arm.</p>
<p>"Oh, shut up." The green-eyed girl sticks out her tongue before retreating back into the dressing room. She emerges with two boxes and two letters in her hands. She hands a small black box with an envelope attached to each girl. They both open them at the same time and Lena watches as smiles grace their features. She got them both silver necklaces with a knot pendant since they will both be by her side when she ties the knot.</p>
<p>“Now the letter." Lena suggests and they carefully tear open the envelopes and remove the cards. When they open the letter, they both start laughing. </p>
<p>"Of course we will be your <em>bitchy bridesmaids</em>." Sam leans in and plants a kiss to her friend's cheek. Lena got them both cards that said <em>I'm getting hitched and I need my bitch.</em></p>
<p>“We wouldn’t miss it for the world.” Andrea leans in and gives her best friend a tight hug.</p>
<p>"I'm so glad I have my two girls by my side." Lena reaches up and wipes some tears away as she watches the two girls in front of her do the same. "Now let me go get out of this thing so we can go eat and then go home. I'm starved and I miss my girl." The brunette rushes back into the dressing room so she can remove the dress. While hanging the dress back up, she can't help but smile when she realizes that she's found her dress so she's now one step closer to marrying Kara... again.</p>
<p>All the girls meet at Kara and Lena’s place after the dress shopping, Nia and Lucy as well. The two girls stopped to pick up Ruby from school on their way over. Kara and Alex are the last to arrive and when they enter the house, the blonde is almost knocked over by an excited Kieran. Alex pats the dog on the head and then walks into the living room.</p>
<p>"Hey there, buddy." Kara kneels on the floor to get eye level with the dog. "I missed you." She cooes and Kieran just responds with a lick to her cheek.</p>
<p>"What about me?" Kara hears a husky voice and she looks up to see her wife leaning against the wall about 10 feet in front of her. "Did you miss me?"</p>
<p>"Miss is a strong word." Kara shrugs, a playful smile making its way across her features. "I mean I thought about you once or twice."</p>
<p>"Only once or twice huh?" Lena cocks an eyebrow as she closes the distance between the two of them. Kara stands up when she notices her wife coming closer. The brunette backs her wife up against the door and hovers her lips over Kara’s. "How about now? Are you thinking about me now?" Lena whispers, her lips still an inch away from Kara’s.</p>
<p>"Maybe." The blonde challenges and Lena immediately lowers her lips and attaches them to Kara’s neck. She sucks on her pulse point, which elicits a moan from the blue-eyed girl. Lena runs her hands down her wife's exposed legs and gently picks them up so she can wrap them around her waist. She tangles one hand in Kara’s blonde locks and the other settles on her perfect ass. She trails a few kisses up Kara’s neck until she reaches her ear and then nibbles at her lobe.</p>
<p>“So yeah…” Kara breathes out. "I'm definitely thinking about you now." She lets out another moan when she feels Lena blow softly on the shell of her ear. "Who am I kidding, you are on my mind every second of every day, baby." Kara gently turns her wife's face and captures her lips in a searing kiss. Both of the girls sigh when their lips finally meet.</p>
<p>"See, Nia. I told you they were having sex by the door." Lucy says as she leans against the same wall Lena was leaning on just a minute ago. Both girls pull away at the same time. "You owe me ten bucks." Lena gently sets Kara back on her feet and kisses her forehead before turning around to glare at their friends.</p>
<p>“Dammit, ladies, could you not keep it in your pants until we left?" All three girls watch as Nia makes her way to the kitchen and grabs her wallet from her purse. She retrieves a ten dollar bill and then walks back over and lays it in Lucy’s awaiting hand. "You are truly costing me a lot of money."</p>
<p>Lena and Kara just roll their eyes and walk into the living room hand in hand. When they walk in, they see Ruby and Sam sitting on one of their couches. Kieran is laying in between them, his head resting on Ruby’s lap. Andrea and Alex are sitting on another couch across from them.</p>
<p>"Okay so we asked you all to come over for a reason." Lena begins, her arm wrapped around Kara’s shoulders. "As you all know, we are getting married again and we want you all to be a part of it."</p>
<p>"We know everyone couldn't come dress shopping today because of work and school." Kara addresses Nia, Lucy, and Ruby. "So we called you over to pop the questions here." She reaches over and grabs three envelopes and three boxes from the table by the couch. She hands Ruby a box and envelope and hands Nia and Lucy each a box and envelope as well.</p>
<p>Nia and Lucy tear into their envelopes first and both smile gently when they read the letter that says <em>you’ve been by my side through thick and thin so please be there again when I marry Lena.</em> Next, they move on to the gift, which is the tie the knot necklace that Sam and Andrea received as well.</p>
<p>"This is beautiful." Nia gushes.</p>
<p>“Of course we will be there on your big day, Kar.” Lucy wraps her best friend up in a hug and Nia joins in and wraps her arms around both of them.</p>
<p>"Can I open mine already?" Ruby asks as she bounces up and down on the couch.</p>
<p>"Sure, princess." Lena replies.</p>
<p>As soon as Ruby gets the okay, she tears into the wrapping that is covering her box. When she finally gets it all off and opens the box, a huge smile spreads across her face. "I'm gonna be the flower girl!" She yells as she throws her fist up in the air.</p>
<p>"Is that okay with you?" Kara asks gently.</p>
<p>“Yes, of course! I would be honored!" The younger brunette nods her head and Lena walks forward and places a kiss to her forehead.</p>
<p>“We are so glad." The green-eyed girl whispers as she moves a stray piece of hair away from Ruby’s forehead.</p>
<p>"Now who's ready to plan the best dang wedding this city has ever seen?" Kara asks and Lena smirks.</p>
<p>"You know I'm ready." The brunette leans in and plants a kiss to her wife's cheek. "However, I'm really tired from dress shopping so can we maybe start planning the best damn wedding another day?"</p>
<p>"Sure, babe." Kara nods.</p>
<p>When all the girls leave, Lena and Kara cuddle up on the couch with a glass of wine and turn on a movie. About halfway through the movie, Kara turns to Lena and notices that she's not really focused on the movie. She reaches up and brushes her wife's cheek with the back of her hand.</p>
<p>"What are you thinking about?" Kara whispers.</p>
<p>"I'm thinking about how lucky I am. Not many people get to marry the love of their life once." Lena voices her thoughts. "But I get to marry mine twice. Once at a beautiful beach in Venice and the second time surrounded by our friends and family."</p>
<p>Kara doesn't answer, she just leans in and plants a kiss to her wife's lips. When she pulls away, she studies Lena’s face for a few seconds and wonders what she did in her past life to deserve such an incredible woman.</p>
<p>She is broken from her thoughts when a hand cups her cheek. "What are you thinking about, darling?"</p>
<p>“I’m thinking about how much I want to make love to you right now." Kara husks and Lena nods eagerly.</p>
<p>"I'm so in love with you." Lena voices as she follows Kara into their bedroom.</p>
<p>"Good because you're stuck with me forever." The blonde replies as she shuts the door and shoves Lena onto the bed.</p>
<p>"Forever." Lena repeats as Kara crawls on top of her. "I really like the sound of that."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0038"><h2>38. Chapter 38</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"You better have her home by at least 2 am. Any later and I'm coming to drag you all home myself." Lena raises one of her perfectly sculpted eyebrows and stares seriously at the group of girls in front of her.</p><p>Tonight is Kara’s bachelorette party and Lucy insisted they go to a strip club. Kara didn't agree at first, but once Lena assured her it was okay and Lucy assured her they would be taking the green-eyed girl to one too, she caved. However, when Lena looks at her wife tonight in her short red dress, fishnet tights, and high heels, she almost tells her she can't go. Instead of doing that though, she just chooses to give them all a quick lecture before they leave for the club.</p><p>"Don't worry, Lena. You know I'll take care of all of them." Nia pipes up from the doorway and Lena does have to admit that Nia being there makes her feel a bit better. She just nods gratefully at the brunette before closing the distance between her and her wife. All the girls leave the house to give them some privacy and when the front door closes, signaling that the two of them are alone, Lena gently cradles Kara’s face in her hands and stares deeply into her favorite pair of blue eyes.</p><p>"Call me if you need me. Call me if you get scared. Call me if you feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable. Call me if you need anything." Lena leans in and places a gentle kiss to the tip of Kara’s nose. "I'll have my phone on loud so I'll answer immediately I promise."</p><p>Kara smiles tenderly at her wife. She thinks it's so adorable how protective Lena is of her. "I love you for looking out for me, but I'll be fine, Lee. I pinky promise." She holds her pinky up and the brunette wraps her own around it.</p><p>"I know you'll be fine and I know you guys will have so much fun. I just worry. I trust you completely. I just don't trust everyone else in the world. Not everyone is as kind as you are." Lena sighs before leaning in and placing a single kiss to Kara’s lips. Even after all these years, one single kiss is enough to set free a million butterflies in each of their stomachs.</p><p>"I think it's cute that you worry. You worry because you care. I know that." Kara places both her hands on top of Lena’s, which are still cupping her cheeks.</p><p>"Now go have fun... but not too much fun. I love you, darling." The green-eyed girl releases her hold on her wife and takes a step back.</p><p>"Will do, baby. I love you more." Kara winks before turning around and walking out to the driveway, where the rest of the girls are standing. Kara’s bachelorette party crew consists of Lucy, Nia, and Alex. Maggie, Sam, and Andrea were also invited, but Maggie had work, Sam had to go to a play that Ruby was in, and Andrea was back in New York City. </p><p>"Let's get this party started!" Lucy yells and all the girls cheer as they pile into the car.</p><p>"Make sure one of you stays sober so you can drive the rest of you home!" Lena yells from the doorstep as she watches the girls pile into the vehicle.</p><p>"Just go to sleep, grandma! We've got it from here!" Lucy yells out the window and Lena rolls her eyes. She laughs when she sees Kara slap Lucy on the arm for her comment. Kara then puts her hand to her lips and blows her wife a kiss before they back out of the driveway. Lena blows her one back before shutting the door and making her way to the couch where Kieran is sleeping. She grabs her glass of wine and flips on the television.</p><p>As soon as the bachelorette crew arrives at their destination, Kara stands in the club, wide-eyed as she takes in her surroundings. The club is dark, crowded, and smells kind of bad, just as she had imagined it would. Truth be told, this is the first time she's ever stepped foot inside of a strip club. So when she sets her sights on the half naked women sliding down the poles, she cannot bring herself to look away. Suddenly the room has gotten 10 degrees hotter. She doesn't even realize that her jaw has dropped a bit until she feels a hand under her chin lifting it back up. She turns to her right to see Alex smirking at her.</p><p>"It's so obvious that this is your first time at a strip club, sis." Alex laughs as she grabs her sister’s hand and ushers her, and Nia, to a booth near one of the stages. Lucy goes to the bar to get them all drinks. After the three girls get settled in the booth, Kara looks toward the stage again and watches a brunette, that is in minimal clothing, dance seductively. Kara gulps when she makes eye contact with the woman. When Lucy gets back to the booth with their drinks, the blonde reaches for her Amaretto Sour and takes a big sip. Kara watches as the woman walks toward the edge of the stage. She figures she is just going to dance there. However, the exotic dancer has other plans and she makes her way down the stairs and walks over to their table. Kara’s eyes go wide and her mouth gets dry when she watches the woman stop in front of her table. Luckily, Alex and Lucy are on the end and not her.</p><p>"Any of you ladies want a lap dance?" The beautiful woman asks, her voice raspy.</p><p>"This one does." Lucy points to Kara and the blonde immediately shakes her head no. She promised herself she wouldn't touch any of the ladies. Even if other people think it's harmless, she just can't bring herself to touch another woman that isn't Lena.</p><p>"I'm um.." Kara starts stuttering when the half naked woman starts to come closer to her side of the table. When Alex stands up from the booth and gives the woman access to Kara, she panics. "Going to go get another drink at the umm bar." The flustered blonde scrambles out of the booth before the dancer can get to her and practically sprints to the bar. When she gets to the bar, she orders two shots of tequila. Once they are poured, she is about to down one until someone interrupts her.</p><p>"Well well, never thought I would run into you here." Kara hears a vaguely familiar voice say. She sets her tequila down and turns to the person beside her. Her eyes widen when she sees who it is.</p><p>"Jamie." She nods her head curtly at the man who just so happens to be William’s step brother. The man never liked Kara to begin with so she has no idea what to expect from this conversation.</p><p>"William used to love to come to places like this." The man says as he looks around the club. "He was so young. Had a whole life ahead of him, but you took that from him." She watches as his face turns up in disgust when his eyes land on her. His words make her insides boil. The shots of tequila are very tempting at the moment so she takes both back to back without even grimacing and turns to William’s brother.</p><p>“Your brother is the reason I have nightmares almost every night. He is the reason I flinch every single time a man gets too close to me.” Kara motions for the bartender to pour her more shots.</p><p>"He was obviously provoked." Jamie scoffs and Kara balls her hands into tight fists. "I mean if you were so scared of him then why did you stay with him?”</p><p>Luckily, the bartender is back with her shots and she takes two more. Liquid courage.</p><p>“I was scared to leave! I was scared he’d hunt me down and kill me if I did!” She shouts loudly, not even caring that several people at the bar have turned to face them.</p><p>“You’re an ungrateful bitch. I would fucking beat you too if you were my girlfriend.” He seethes and Kara raises her hand and slaps him across the face. Maybe she’s had a bit too much liquid courage. "You whore..." The tall man lunges at Kara, but is held back by a security guard, which luckily was already headed over after witnessing Kara slap the man.</p><p>"Kar, what in the world?" Kara hears her sister’s voice and turns to her right to see Alex standing there wide-eyed. The older sister ran to the bar as soon as she witnessed the blonde slap the random man.</p><p>"It's nothing." She shrugs Alex off coldly and walks over to where Nia and Lucy are sitting. Her head is spinning a bit and she curses herself for taking those 4 tequila shots back to back.</p><p>"Kar, what's going on?" Lucy asks worriedly when the blonde enters the booth. "Why did you slap that man?"</p><p>"He was William’s step brother." Kara reaches across the table and grabs Nia’s vodka cranberry. Before the brunette can take her drink back, Kara downs it and then wipes the remaining liquid off her face with the back of her hand. "I don't want to talk about it.”</p><p>"Kara..." Alex starts, but Kara holds up a hand cutting her off.</p><p>"Please, Alex. I just want to enjoy my night. He has ruined so many other fun times for me and I won't let him ruin tonight." Kara slurs and Alex drops it. Honestly, she knows that once the alcohol fully sets in, the blonde will probably tell them all anyway.</p><p>Boy was she right.</p><p>About half an hour later, Kara drunkenly explains what happened earlier at the bar while she angrily throws money at the exotic dancer that is on stage.</p><p>Lucy’s money.</p><p>However, the brunette is not complaining because after Kara went through twenty one dollar bills, Lucy gave her a stack of fake money that she got from Target. Kara is so drunk that she doesn't even realize she's throwing fake money at real strippers.</p><p>"He freaking said that because I stayed with William that I was asking for the abuse.” Kara slurs as she attempts to throw another fake one dollar bill at the dancer in front of her. However, it doesn't even make it across the table, which the girls are thankful for. The dancers may start taking it personally if they realize the blonde is only throwing fake money at them and not real money.</p><p>"Kar-" Lucy starts to try and comfort her friend, but the blue-eyed girl cuts her off.</p><p>"Was I asking for it? Maybe I wanted a fight. Maybe that's why I stayed with him." Kara grabs Alex’s drink and downs it. Alex doesn't stop her considering she has only been drinking water tonight. Someone had to be the designated driver. After chugging the water, the intoxicated blonde leans back in the booth and then lays her head on Alex’s shoulder. "I want Lee."</p><p>Lucy immediately pulls out her phone and texts the green-eyed girl. Shortly after she sends the text, Kara falls asleep on her sister’s shoulder. While she's out, Nia scoops up all the fake dollar bills from around their table and shoves them into her purse. Lena arrives at the club exactly 15 minutes after receiving the text from Lucy. The brunette was very vague, but Lena knew something semi bad must have happened tonight. The green-eyed girl rushes into the club and frantically looks around for her wife and friends. She spots them in the back corner booth and jogs over to where they are sitting.</p><p>"What happened? Is she okay? Was she drugged?" Lena panics as she takes in the sight of Kara asleep on Alex’s shoulder. Her lips are slightly parted and there are strands of hair stuck to her forehead.</p><p>"She ran into William’s step brother and he said some nasty things that really upset her. Then she drank a lot to cope with the anger." Alex whispers and Lena frowns. Lucy and Nia slide out of the booth so that Lena can slide around to get to her wife. When the brunette is finally sitting by her wife, she positions Kara so that she's laying on her instead of Alex and plants a kiss to the top of her head.</p><p>"I love you." She whispers to the blonde and upon hearing the sound of her wife's voice, Kara blinks her eyes open</p><p>"Lee?" The blue-eyed girl whispers groggily.</p><p>"I'm here, baby." Lena replies immediately. She grabs Kara’s hand and places a kiss to the back of it. When Kara realizes that it is in fact her wife that she is laying on, she crawls into her lap and buries her face into her neck.</p><p>"I'm so sorry you had to drive all the way here." Kara apologizes and Lena immediately shakes her head.</p><p>"I'll always come when you need me." The brunette assures. "Please don't ever apologize for needing me."</p><p>"I'll always need you, Lee." Kara whispers into her wife’s neck and the green-eyed girl can tell by the tone of her voice that she is falling asleep again.</p><p>"And I'll always be here."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0039"><h2>39. Chapter 39</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Maybe your bachelorette party won't get ruined by some crazy step brother that insists on defending a psychopath who likes to beat up on girls." Kara laughs darkly as she helps Lena zip her dress up.</p>
<p>"Aw darling, you guys really need to have a bachelorette party do-over." Lena turns around, a pout plastered across her features. Kara leans in to kiss the pout away.</p>
<p>"The girls promised to take me out for drinks sometime soon." The blonde smiles softly at her wife. "Don't worry about me, you go have fun tonight." Kara leads Lena out their bedroom door and to their front door. Once they make it there, they hear someone knock and Lena opens the door to find her bachelorette crew standing outside. It's basically the same group as Kara’s, but this time Sam and Maggie are able to attend.</p>
<p>"Bachelorette party round two bitches!" Lucy yells and Kara walks to stand in front of the group of girls.</p>
<p>"You better have her home by at least 2 am. Any later and I'm coming to drag you all home myself." Kara recites what Lena said to the girls last time they were here. She tries to mimic Lena’s voice the best that she can.</p>
<p>"That was not a good impression of me, darling." Lena stares at her wife with an amused expression on her face.</p>
<p>"It was actually spot on, Lena." Sam chimes in and Kara gives the brunette a high five.</p>
<p>"Lets go, ladies. I'm not getting any younger here." Lucy grabs Lena’s hand and drags her out of the house.</p>
<p>"Make sure one of you stays sober so you can drive the rest of you home!" Kara yells after them, once again mimicking what her wife said a couple of nights before.</p>
<p>"Just go to sleep, grandma! We've got it from here!" Lucy answers Kara just how she answered Lena.</p>
<p>Kara chuckles as she watches all the girls pile into the car. She watches as Lena lifts her hand to her lips and blows her a kiss. The blonde’s heart skips a beat and she immediately returns the gesture. Once the car pulls out of the driveway, she turns to Kieran, who is laying on the couch.</p>
<p>“I’ll be back later, buddy. I have to run an errand." Kara grabs the backpack that she packed for herself while Lena was getting ready.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the girls have all pulled up at the club and are piling out of the car. As they walk up to the club, they can't help but smirk at all the stares they are getting.</p>
<p>"Back so soon?" The bouncer at the door smiles warmly at all the girls.</p>
<p>"We just couldn't stay away from the strippers, Rob.” Lucy pats the man on the shoulder. "And by we, I mean Nia. She has an exotic dancer fetish." Nia slaps her wife on the shoulder while assuring Rob that she most certainly does not have an exotic dancer fetish. The rest of the girls just laugh as they watch the whole interaction. Once all ID's are checked, they all pile inside and head to the booth they were at the other night. All the girls, except for Sam, pile into the booth. The brunette announces that she's going to get a round of shots and saunters off in the direction of the bar. All the girls are mid conversation when Lucy randomly doubles over in laughter. The brunette holds up a paper dollar bill that she found lodged in one of the cracks in the booth. As soon as Alex and Nia see it, they burst out in laughter too while Lena and Maggie stare at them in confusion.</p>
<p>"Kar was drunkenly throwing my money the night of her bachelorette party and once she went through twenty one dollar bills, I started handing her paper money to throw. She didn't even realize that it was fake. She was just angrily throwing it." Lucy wipes the tears from her eyes and holds her side that is aching from all the laughter. Lena and Maggie can't help but laugh when they hear the story.</p>
<p>"I'm one lucky woman." Lena announces to the group. "She always puts a smile on my face. Even when she's not around me, she still makes me smile." Lucy makes gagging noises and Nia slaps her leg.</p>
<p>"You two are relationship goals." Nia chimes in.</p>
<p>“Thanks, Nia." Lena smiles softly at the girl. “Loving her has been easy, but our journey hasn’t. Wouldn’t change anything though.”</p>
<p>“Not been easy is an understatement for sure.” Lucy chimes in. “You two got separated, she lost her memory, you found her again, you made her fall in love with you for the second time, she got her memory back, etc etc.”</p>
<p>“My sister loves Nicholas Sparks' movies so much that she turned her life into one." Alex says and everyone laughs.</p>
<p>"But really who is going to write a book about their love life?" Maggie looks around at all the girls.</p>
<p>"It would make the New York Times Best Sellers list easily." Sam adds in as she sets all the drinks on the table and slides in the booth next to Lucy. Before any of the girls can respond, the lights go out and they hear a voice come over the loud speaker.</p>
<p>"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a treat for you tonight. We haven't had a new face on the stage in a very long time, but tonight that will change." The man says and the girls watch as spotlights shine on the stage near their booth. "On the stage, near the back booth, we have a new dancer. Show her some love."</p>
<p>Not seconds later, the song "Pony" by Ginuwine fills their ears and they watch as a woman walks out on stage. She is wearing a long red silk robe and when Ginuwine starts singing, she slowly unties the robe and lets it fall to the floor. Her back is to the audience so no one can see what she looks like from the front, but her long blonde locks and long tan legs have captured everyone's attention, including Lena’s. The brunette feels her heart start beating faster as she drinks in every bit of this new dancer. Her eyes trail from her black pumps all the way up her tan legs to the skimpy little black number she's wearing.</p>
<p>The exotic dancer wraps both toned legs around the pole and lowers herself to the floor in a sensual and slow manner. Her head tilts back momentarily before she slowly works her body back up the pole. With her back still turned to the girls, she grabs the pole and moves her hips back and forth to the music. Lena’s throat goes dry at the sight of her ass swaying sensually from side to side. She then swings around the pole once and lowers herself onto the ground once again. She gets on her hands and knees and starts crawling toward the booth. Her head is down and her light hair is covering her face. When the dancer gets to the edge of the stage, she lifts her head up and finally faces the audience. It is then that everyone gets a good look at the dancer's face. Even though her beautiful face is partially covered by a black lace mask, all the girls sitting near the stage know exactly who the dancer is the second they see her face.</p>
<p>And every single one of their jaws drop to the floor.</p>
<p>"Fucking hell." Lena whispers under her breath as she watches Kara stand up and strut down the stairs. The dancer walks toward her wife with a smirk on her face.</p>
<p>"You look like you could use a lap dance, baby." Kara husks as she straddles Lena, who luckily was sitting on the outside of the booth.</p>
<p>
  <em>Ride it, my pony</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>My saddle's waiting</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Come and jump on it</em>
</p>
<p>Kara forcefully grinds her hips into Lena’s and the green-eyed girl throws her head back when her wife's core grinds into her own. The blonde positions Lena’s hands so that they are cupping her ass and she continues grinding her hips into Lena’s while her hands tangle in her dark hair and her lips find her neck. Kara licks up Lena’s neck until she gets to her ear. Her tongue traces the outer shell of her ear and then she roughly bites down on her ear lobe, which elicits a moan from the brunette. When the song ends, Kara hungrily kisses Lena on the lips. As soon as the next song starts playing, Kara breaks the kiss and gets off Lena so she can make her way back up onto the stage.</p>
<p>
  <em>Early in the morning is when I think about you</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I hit you like, "what you saying"</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>And the morning is when I want to fuck you, yeah</em>
</p>
<p>Lena watches as Kara heads to the center stage and does her same pole routine that she did in front of their booth. When the blonde shakes her ass, the crowd goes wild. The brunette watches as her wife walks to the edge of the stage and slowly lowers herself to the floor, her hands pushing her thighs apart on the way down.</p>
<p>"Fuck me." Lena whispers when she sees her wife sensually spreading her legs wide before laying on her stomach and pushing herself back up to her knees slowly. The sound of whistling fills Lena’s ears and she watches as one brave man walks up and places a wad of dollar bills in the top of Kara’s fishnet tights</p>
<p>
  <em>She's so sweet, Now or Later</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I want that all the time, all the time</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I'll make you all mine</em>
</p>
<p>When the man starts to get too handsy, Kara stands up and makes her way to the center of the stage again. Lena looks around the room and when she sees multiple men and women licking their lips as they stare at her wife's perfect ass, she gets up from the booth and quickly walks up on stage. She grabs the red robe that's lying on the stage and walks to where her wife is. When Kara sees her wife coming toward her with the robe in hand, she smirks.</p>
<p>"I figured you'd be up here to get me by the second song." Kara husks while Lena helps her put the robe on and ties it in the front, effectively covering most of her body up. As soon as the robe is back on, the crowd starts booing and Kara chuckles while Lena flips everyone off. The green-eyed girl grabs her wife's hand and leads her backstage. Before they make it off the stage, they hear the male voice come over the loud speaker once again.</p>
<p>“Reign, everyone!" The man yells and the crowd erupts in cheers.</p>
<p>"They freaking love me." Kara tosses her hair over her shoulder dramatically and Lena shakes her head in amusement. </p>
<p>"Reign? Really?" Lena turns to her wife once they've entered the back dressing room where Kara left her stuff. "Also when did you learn how to pole dance?"</p>
<p>"I always knew that would be my stripper name. I just never thought I would actually get to use it." Kara shrugs. "When we agreed we were both going to strip clubs for our bachelorette parties, this idea came to me and I started going to pole dancing classes." The blonde watches her wife walk back to the dressing room door and lock it. When she turns around, Kara notices how dark her eyes are.</p>
<p>When the green-eyed girl makes it over to her, in one swift motion, she picks her up and sets her on top of the makeup counter. Their lips forcefully collide and their tongues fight for dominance. Lena runs her hands over every inch of Kara’s body.</p>
<p>"That. Was. So. Fucking. Sexy." Lena says in between kisses before pulling away for a quick minute. "But never fucking do that again because you are only mine." The brunette says possessively and Kara nods her head while biting her lip. Lena rips open her robe and a moan escapes Kara’s lips when Lena places wet kisses to her collarbone and then to the tops of her breasts that aren't covered by her top. Lena rubs her hands up and down Kara’s toned legs as she runs her tongue over every inch of Kara’s chest.</p>
<p>"You're all mine, Kara." Lena husks.</p>
<p>"Then take what's yours, Lee." Kara challenges and Lena does just that.</p>
<p>The rest of the night, moans and music fill both of their ears as they make love in the back of the strip club. Kara must admit that she wasn't too fond of this place the first time she entered it the night of her bachelorette party.</p>
<p>However, as she's laying naked on the dressing room counter while Lena makes love to her, she can't help but think that this place is not so bad after all.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0040"><h2>40. Chapter 40</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"I can't breathe." Kara panics as she stands in front of the full length mirror.</p>
<p>"Let me just remind you that you've already done this once, sis. So you're basically a pro when it comes to weddings." Alex finishes zipping up her sister’s white dress. When she gets the zipper all the way to the top, she smooths out the dress and then gives Kara’s shoulders a light squeeze. "You look absolutely beautiful. I just want to let you know that I feel honored that I get to stand by your side and watch you marry the love of your life." Alex wipes at the tears that are starting to spill from her eyes. When Kara sees her sister crying in the reflection of the mirror, she quickly turns around to face her.</p>
<p>"Why did I even put on any make up?” The blonde chuckles as she reaches up to wipe away Alex’s tears before wiping her own. "Having you by my side on my wedding day is the greatest blessing. Even when I couldn't remember Lena, you helped me remember. You never gave up on us. You guided me back into her arms and for that, I am eternally indebted to you." Kara grabs her sister’s hands and brings them both up to her lips so she can plant a kiss to the back of her hands.</p>
<p>"Just repay me by having cute little babies that I can spoil endlessly." The older sister gives Kara’s hands 3 light squeezes. Her way of saying 'I love you.' The blonde smiles softly before nodding her head, silently promising that there will be children in the future.</p>
<p>And she has every intention of keeping that promise. She wants everything with Lena. The little red brick house that sits behind the white picket fence. The two car garage that holds their black Charger and a spiffed up mini van that they will use to take their beautiful kids to practices and plays and school events. A big backyard that will be furnished with wooden chairs and lights hanging from the trees. Kara will sit in a chair, sip her lemonade, and watch as Lena chases their kids around the yard.</p>
<p>A knock at the door breaks her from her thoughts and she watches as Nia enters the room. The brunette is matching her sister, both of them sporting elegant dresses.</p>
<p>"The ceremony is starting." Nia informs them both and this makes Kara’s hands start sweating even more than they already were. "You look beautiful, Kar." She offers the bride a smile before shutting the door back. Kara’s already spent time with each bridesmaid and took pictures with each one of them. Lucy cried all her makeup off when she saw Kara and had to redo it. </p>
<p>"Let's go make our favorite green-eyed girl's jaw hit the floor, yeah?” Alex loops her arm through Kara’s and guides her out of the room. As soon as they get to the wooden door of the chapel, both girls stop in front of it. Kara takes a deep breath before turning to her sister with wide eyes.</p>
<p>"I don't have anyone to walk me down the aisle." Kara tells Alex sadly. "I've been so busy planning everything else that I didn't even remember that someone has to walk me down the aisle." The bride rambles and the older sister just tightens her grip on her arm and patiently waits for her to finish. However, when it doesn't seem like the blonde is stopping her nervous rambling anytime soon, Alex gently places a finger to her lips.</p>
<p>“Yes, you do." Alex simply states. "I'm walking you down that aisle.” Tears well up in Kara’s eyes again and she leans in and plants a kiss to her sister’s cheek. When she pulls back, she uses her thumb to wipe the lipstick from the spot she just kissed.</p>
<p>"You, Alex, are the best maid of honor and sister that a girl could ask for." She quickly reaches up to wipe the tears from her cheeks and they both let out teary laughs.</p>
<p>"Who fucking let our emotional asses be alone together on your wedding day?" Alex chuckles.</p>
<p>A few seconds later, they hear a violin start playing "Lover" by Taylor Swift.</p>
<p>"That's our cue." Alex whispers. Kara just nods and grips her sister’s arm tightly as the door to the wedding chapel opens to reveal the entire wedding party, guests, and her drop dead gorgeous bride.</p>
<p>When Kara’s eyes meet Lena’s, the whole world around her disappears and suddenly it's just the two of them in the room. With each step Kara takes, she thinks of all the reasons why she loves the green-eyed girl. She watches as a single tear rolls down her wife's cheek as she closes the distance between them. Of all the reasons she lists in her head of why she loves Lena, the most important is that she loves Lena because Lena loves her unconditionally. She loves her through the good and the bad. She loved her even when Kara couldn't remember her. She loved her enough to send her away just to keep her safe. There's truly nothing Kara loves more than the green-eyed girl standing 3 steps away from her.</p>
<p>"I'm so lucky." The blonde whispers as she takes the last couple of steps down the aisle.</p>
<p>"She's lucky too." Alex whispers back and then brings them to a stop when they reach Lena and the other girls. "Now go marry your girl again." The older sister gently untangles her arm from Kara’s. She gives her hand a light squeeze before motioning for the girl to go stand in front of her wife. When Kara is in place, Alex takes her place by Lucy.</p>
<p>Lena holds both hands out in front of her and Kara doesn't hesitate to take the pale hands in her own. The blue-eyed bride smiles fondly when she feels that Lena’s hands are just as clammy as her own. They are both nervous, but in the best way possible. Kara gives the hands in hers a gentle squeeze to try and calm both of their nerves. She only tears her eyes away from the captivating green ones in front of her when she hears someone clear their throat beside her. Kara looks to her left and gives the officiant her undivided attention.</p>
<p>"We are gathered here today to celebrate a beautiful love. A love that has overcome many, many obstacles and only grew stronger for having gone through those obstacles. A love that we all hope to find someday." The young woman smiles at the two girls in front of her. "A love that gives us hope and reminds us that the world is a beautiful place, despite the hardships that we face and the negative things we see happening around us." The officiant takes a breath. "Before we get to the vows, Kara has something she would like to do." Lena looks at Kara with furrowed eyebrows when she feels her hands slip from her own and watches as the blonde walks away from her. Kara makes her way over to the piano that is situated in the corner of the chapel.</p>
<p>"I've never been good at speaking my feelings. My preferred method of explaining what I am feeling is through music." Kara starts to play a melody on the piano. "There was one particular song that echoed in my thoughts every single time I was with Lena. The lyrics flooded my mind when I first looked up from my book and my eyes connected with her green eyes for the first time. Those same lyrics replayed over and over in my head every single second I spent with her. I have written many, many songs for Lena, but unfortunately I did not write this one. Although I wish I did." Kara chuckles into the mic. "I would always hear people say that you can't help who you love. I didn't know that to be true until I met Lena. When she walked into that classroom, sat down by me, and introduced herself, I knew I would be hers if she wanted me and I knew I would be hers even if she didn't. Love is a funny thing because you don't choose it, it chooses you. I'm just really glad that love chose Lena for me because I wouldn't have wanted to fall madly in love with anyone else." Kara looks up from the piano and sets her sights on her beautiful bride. "This one's for you, baby."</p>
<p>
  <em>Wise men say</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Only fools rush in</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>But I can't help falling in love with you</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Shall I stay?</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Would it be a sin?</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>If I can't help falling in love with you</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>Like a river flows</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Surely to the sea</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Darling, so it goes</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Some things are meant to be</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>Take my hand</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Take my whole life too</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>For I can't help falling in love with you</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>Like a river flows</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Surely to the sea</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Darling, so it goes</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Some things are meant to be</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>Take my hand</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Take my whole life, too</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>For I can't help falling in love with you</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>For I can't help falling in love with you</em>
</p>
<p>When she plays the last note on the piano, she quickly wipes at the tears that have dampened her cheeks and then makes her way back to where Lena is standing. The green-eyed girl immediately pulls her wife closer and leans in to kiss her. However, before their lips touch a voice interrupts them.</p>
<p>"Not yet, ladies!" The officiant shouts and laughter erupts throughout the chapel. Lena stops herself and decides to plant a kiss on Kara’s forehead instead.</p>
<p>"That was beautiful, darling." The brunette whispers.</p>
<p>"Now, onto the vows. Will you both please join hands." The woman in the black pantsuit asks and the girls do as they're told. Once they recite the vows and make the promises to love and cherish each other for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, Sam hands Lena Kara’s ring and Alex hands Kara Lena’s ring. Once again, they repeat everything the officiant says and then they slide the rings onto each other's fingers.</p>
<p>"I love you." Kara whispers and the green-eyed girl gives her hands a gentle squeeze.</p>
<p>"I now pronounce you wife and wife. Now you may kiss the bride!” The woman smiles widely as she watches the two newlyweds kiss. "I present to you Mrs. and Mrs. Luthor-Danvers!” Everyone stands to their feet and claps as the couple walks down the aisle and out of the chapel.</p>
<p>Kara and Lena decided to have the reception at Alex’s restaurant, considering it's fairly big and free. The two brides spend a lot of time at the reception talking with friends and family. They are all smiles until someone from Lena’s past shows up.</p>
<p>"What are you doing here?" Lena clenches her jaw.</p>
<p>"Lena, I-" Veronica starts to explain.</p>
<p>"I invited her." Kara chimes in and Lena turns to her with confused eyes. “Life’s too short to hold grudges." Kara leans in and kisses her wife on the cheek. "I'm going to give you two some time alone."</p>
<p>Lena nods and Kara walks to where her mom is sitting. She spends the next half hour listening to Eliza gush about how she cannot wait to be a grandmother. Kara can't help but smile at the thought of starting a family with Lena.</p>
<p>"Whatcha smiling about, darling?" She hears a husky voice whisper in her ear.</p>
<p>"Just thinking about our future." Kara answers as Lena sits down in the chair beside her. "Did you two work everything out?" The blonde nods her head in Veronica’s direction.</p>
<p>"We did. It's going to take some time before we are back to normal, but I think we can be close friends again eventually." Lena smiles as she leans in and plants a kiss to her wife's button nose.</p>
<p>"I'm glad, Lee. Life really is too short you know?” Kara voices her thoughts. Before Lena can reply, she hears the sound of a very familiar song fill her ears.</p>
<p>“Lena and Kara, it's time for your first dance. So get your asses out on that dance floor right now." Lucy speaks into the microphone.</p>
<p>
  <em>So I heard you found somebody else.</em>
</p>
<p>"What kind of first dance song is this?" Eliza asks before they get up from the table. Lena looks over at her with a grin on her face.</p>
<p>"It's our song." The green-eyed girl shrugs before making eye contact with Kara again. "C'mon darling, let's go dance." The two brides walk out to the middle of the makeshift dance floor, which is in the middle of the restaurant. Kara wraps her arms around Lena’s neck, while Lena’s hands find Kara’s hips.</p>
<p>"The 1975." Kara says as a gentle smile makes it's way across her face when the memory of their first date replays in her mind.</p>
<p>"Best concert I've ever been to." Lena smiles as she remembers their first date and first kiss.</p>
<p>"It only took the first date for me to realize that I never wanted to share you with somebody else." The blonde hovers her lips over her wife's.</p>
<p>"If I remember correctly, at the beginning of the date you were pretty adamant about having a threesome." Lena whispers against Kara’s lips and the blue-eyed girl lets out a chuckle before leaning in and capturing Lena’s lips in her own.</p>
<p>The sparks, the butterflies, and the fireworks are all still there. Even after all these years, both girls still feel every emotion, all at once, when their lips touch. And they both know that 50 years from now, the sparks, the butterflies, and the fireworks will still be there.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0041"><h2>41. Chapter 41</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"I got the job!" Kara yells as she hangs up the phone. Seconds later, Lena enters the room, scoops her up in her arms, and spins her around. "I can't believe I'm going to teach again. Even if it is just a long term substitute position, I'm still happy to be back in the classroom." The blonde sighs contentedly as her wife puts her back on her feet.</p><p>"They would be crazy not to hire you, darling." Lena kisses the corner of her wife's lips. "I'm so proud of you." Kara smiles and snakes her arms around her wife's neck.</p><p>"Just try not to waltz into this classroom and force me to leave the school again, yeah? I'd like to keep this job." Kara smirks and Lena quirks an eyebrow at her wife's not so funny joke.</p><p>"Not funny, Kara. Still too soon." Lena groans as she buries her face in Kara’s neck.</p><p>"Sorry." The blue-eyed girl says sheepishly. "So did you hear back from your friend in Venice?"</p><p>After the wedding, Kara and Lena went on their honeymoon to Venice. Lena surprised her wife with the trip and the two ended up taking strolls all over the city. They were able to reminisce and see all the places where they made memories together. They even got to visit Kara’s old school where she taught at and the art studio where Lena worked. By the time the honeymoon was over, both girls knew what they wanted to pursue when they got back to National City. Kara wanted to get back into teaching and Lena wanted to open an art studio in National City with the help of her friend in Venice.</p><p>"Yeah, she said that she still wants to think it over and for me to be looking for possible buildings that we could turn into a studio." Lena says as she makes her way over to the Keurig for some coffee.</p><p>"Well that's good news! It sounds like she's really interested." Kara follows Lena to the kitchen and grabs a banana.</p><p>"She kept encouraging me to open one regardless of what her answer is though." The green-eyed girl pours the coffee into her mug.</p><p>"Well it'll all work out I'm sure. I’m going to drop by the high school and see my new classroom.” The blonde plants a kiss on her wife’s cheek before walking into their bedroom and reemerging with a box full of teaching supplies. The blonde walks to the the front door and opens it with her free hand. “We still meeting for lunch?”</p><p>"The Panera Bread by my work. I'll see you there at noon." Lena smiles tenderly at her wife. "Love you, darling."</p><p>"I love you more." Kara winks at Lena before exiting the house.</p><p>When Lena arrives at work, she immediately goes to talk to her boss and lets them know that she won't be coming back next semester. Even if her friend in Venice doesn't want to open up an art studio in National City with her, Lena knows she is just going to open one herself. That has been a dream of hers and she refuses to put it off any longer. Her and Kara are pretty well off with Kara’s on the side songwriting gig and all, so Lena doesn't feel bad about quitting her job. She knows they will be okay no matter what, and she believes in herself enough to know that this art studio that she opens will be a success.</p><p>Meanwhile at the school, Kara is getting her new classroom ready. She starts unloading the box of supplies and personal belongings, starting with pictures of her with friends and family. She sets the picture of her kissing Lena at their wedding on her desk. Not seconds later, she hears a knock at the classroom door.</p><p>"Come in!" She yells and watches as a man, who appears to be in his late 50’s, walks into the room.</p><p>"I'm just coming by to introduce myself. I am Mr. Stevens, the assistant principal here at the school." He walks over to Kara and extends his hand. She stands up from her desk and shakes it.</p><p>"I'm Kara. Thank you for giving me this long term sub position. I've been dying to get back into teaching." The blonde offers him a warm smile. He returns it, but she watches it fade from his face when his eyes land on her desk.</p><p>"It looks like you are all set for tomorrow. Well just put that picture away and then you will be all set." He says and she looks back at her desk to see what he is referring to. She picks up the picture of her and Lena.</p><p>"This one?" She furrows her eyebrows and he nods his head. "This is a picture of me kissing my wife on our wedding day. This picture is really important to me."</p><p>"Mrs. Danvers, we-"</p><p>"Luthor-Danvers." The blue-eyed girl corrects him while crossing her arms across her chest defensively.</p><p>"There are some parents who do not want their kids to be taught by homosexuals. I am not asking you to divorce your wife. I am simply asking that you just don't display pictures of the two of you in your classroom." He says and Kara sees red.</p><p>"So you are telling me that not one teacher in this school has a picture with their spouse displayed anywhere in their classroom?" She quirks an eyebrow up, her jaw clenched tight.</p><p>"Our male teachers have pictures with their wives displayed and our female teachers have pictures with their husbands displayed." He nods his head as if what he is saying makes sense.</p><p>“You know what, I don’t need this.” She throws her hands up and moves back around behind her desk. She starts reloading every belonging of hers back into the cardboard box. "Find another substitute, you homophobic piece of crap." She looks him up and down with disgust before exiting the classroom.</p><p>"Mrs. Danvers please turn in your teaching badge at the front office before you leave!" She hears the assistant principal yell back to her before she walks out the doors. When she gets to the front door, she stops and takes the badge off her shirt. She walks over and throws it in the trash can by the door.</p><p>"I returned it to the trash. The same place that you should be returned to." The angry blonde holds her middle finger up in the air and then exits the building.</p><p>When she gets in her car, she looks at her watch to see that she is late for lunch with Lena. She quickly speeds to Panera and runs inside the restaurant. She looks around and finds Lena at a booth near the back, a table full of food in front of her. Kara swiftly walks to where she is sitting and slumps down in the seat in front of her. She puts her head in her hands and groans loudly.</p><p>"What happened?" Lena questions.</p><p>"I quit my job." The blonde raises her head up slowly and looks at her wife. "The assistant principal of the school paid me a visit today while I was unloading my things into the classroom. He took one look at the picture of the two of us on our wedding day and told me to take the picture down from my desk."</p><p>"That sorry piece of shit I'm going to-" Lena slams her hands down on the table and starts to get up, but Kara reaches for her arm to stop her from leaving the booth.</p><p>"I already gave him a piece of my mind." Kara informs the angry brunette in front of her.</p><p>"He won't get away with this." Lena reaches across the table and takes Kara’s hand in her own. She slowly brings it to her lips and places a kiss to the back of it. "I'm sorry you went through that. I'm sorry that there are such small-minded people in this world."</p><p>"Thanks, Lee. Let's eat, yeah?" Kara eyes her food hungrily. "I'm starved."</p><p>Kara spends the entire lunch telling Lena about the incident at the school. After the two finish their meals, they head their separate ways. Kara heads back to their apartment so she can start the job hunting process again and Lena heads back out in search of buildings that could potentially be her new art studio. However, before continuing her search, she takes a little detour to the school Kara just quit from. The green-eyed girl parks her car near the front of the school and makes her way inside. She follows the signs to the front office and then proceeds to walk past the secretary who is telling her she has to have an appointment if she wants to talk to the principal. Lena just ignores her and walks straight into the principal's office. The man looks up from his computer, his eyebrows furrowed.</p><p>"May I help you?" He asks curiously.</p><p>"Yes, my name is Lena. My wife, Kara Luthor-Danvers, was just hired here as a substitute." Lena says.</p><p>"I was informed that she quit this morning." He takes his glasses off his face and lays them on his desk.</p><p>"She quit because she was told by the assistant principal that she needed to remove the picture of the two of us at our wedding from her desk." Lena clenches her jaw and crosses her arms. "Now I suggest you fire this man or I will have every single news outlet at this school tomorrow morning. I'm sure the people of National City would be infuriated to know that the assistant principal at this school is a homophobic asshole."</p><p>"Mrs. Luthor-Danvers, I can assure you that this will be handled. I am very sorry for our assistant principal's actions." He starts to stand up from his desk.</p><p>"See to it that it is handled." Lena says assertively before walking out of the office. She then heads to the assistant principal's office and walks right up to his desk.</p><p>“Ah, I see that you have a picture with your wife on your desk. That's a nice picture of the two of you." Lena says sarcastically as she picks up the picture from the desk, studies it for a moment, and then puts it back down. "See how easy it is to give a compliment to someone and be a nice human being? Trust me when I say that you'd live a happier, more carefree life if you'd stop being a raging homophobe and remove all of that hate from your heart." She shakes her head disdainfully at the stunned man. "The world has bigger problems than boys who kiss boys and girls who kiss girls." With that, she exits the school and gets in her car. Kara got to give him a piece of her mind and Lena is glad she got to as well.</p><p>Kara is the kindest human being that Lena has ever known. She always sees the good in people and has a beautiful heart. That's exactly why Lena will never just stand by and watch anyone talk down to her or hurt her. She will always defend her with every fiber of her being. When Kara is hurt, she's hurt and when Kara is happy, she's happy. Lena always vowed to keep Kara happy no matter what because the blue-eyed girl deserves all the happiness in the world. And Kara’s smile just so happens to be Lena’s favorite thing in the world.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0042"><h2>42. Chapter 42</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Both Lena and Kara stir awake when they hear someone banging on their front door.</p><p>"Go away." Kara half yells half mumbles into the pillow when the banging doesn't cease. When it only gets louder, Lena finally drags herself out of bed while Kara tries to muffle the noise with her pillow.</p><p>"Ladies! We bought a house!" Lucy shouts as soon as the door in front of her opens. She drags her wife inside the house and Nia looks at the green-eyed girl sympathetically. Even though Lucy may not feel bad about waking people up at an ungodly hour on the weekend, she does.</p><p>"Not that I don't love both of your company, but it's 8 am on a Saturday morning." Lena runs her fingers through her disheveled hair.</p><p>"We bought a house!" Lucy screeches and Lena grimaces at the loudness of her voice.</p><p>"It's 8 in the freaking morning!" All three girls turn their heads and see a very annoyed Kara walk out from the bedroom dressed in nothing but one of Lena’s button down shirts. She walks straight past all of them and straight to the fridge. "You bought a house. Congratu-freaking-lations. Happy for you, but could you have not told us at, I don't know, noon?"</p><p>"She's not a morning person." Lena whispers to the two girls in front of her and they both nod their heads.</p><p>"She's never been one. I knew there was a chance she'd murder me when I knocked on your door at 8 am, but we couldn't wait to tell you guys the news." Lucy gushes and Kara walks over to them with a glass of orange juice in her hand.</p><p>"You bought a house. The whole apartment complex heard." Kara says unenthusiastically as she takes a sip of her orange juice. Lena giggles at her wife's grumpiness and snakes an arm around her waist so she can pull her into her side.</p><p>"Not just any house, Kar. We bought a house close to here! We're neighbors!" Lucy practically screams and Kara calmly sets the empty glass on the coffee table in front of her. She leans in and kisses her wife on the cheek before untangling herself from her and walking over to Lucy. She leans in and kisses her on the cheek before doing the same to Nia.</p><p>"Glad you bought a house, Luce. Tell me again at noon and I promise to be more enthusiastic." The blonde says as she shuffles back to the bedroom. Before she walks in, she turns back around and faces her best friend. "And Lucy, next time you wake me up at 8 am, you will get murdered. That's a promise."</p><p>All three girls just laugh fondly and shake their heads at Kara’s dramatic behavior. For the next 30 minutes, Nia lets Lucy tell Lena about all the details of their new house and then they inform her that they will be having a party this afternoon in their new place to celebrate. When Nia sees the green-eyed girl let out a yawn, she takes Lucy by the hand and practically drags her out of the house, apologizing one last time on her way out to the brunette for waking them up.</p><p>Around noon, Kara and Lena wake up for a second time. After they get themselves ready, and feed Kieran, they head out and walk a few blocks to Lucy and Nia’s new house. Lena checks the house number on the mailbox and when she sees that it says 113, she follows Kara up the driveway.</p><p>"Wow they really are our neighbors aren't they?" Kara chuckles as she looks back and realizes that they can see their apartment from here. "Heck if we cracked a window at night we could probably hear them having sex." </p><p>Lena just looks at her with an amused, yet baffled expression and Kara shrugs her shoulders. The green-eyed girl can honestly say that life with Kara is never boring because still to this day she can never predict what will come out of her mouth. Most of the time it's random jokes that aren't even funny, but when Kara laughs at them, Lena can't help but join in. Her laugh is contagious and yes she's a little whipped. The brunette absolutely loves Kara’s randomness and corny jokes. She also adores her mind, especially the crazy parts of it.</p><p>When they ring the doorbell, Lucy opens the door immediately. "You rang, bitches?" The brunette greets them with a smile on her face and a glass of wine in her hand. Both Lena and Kara just roll their eyes playfully and walk right past her and on into the house.</p><p>"Oh Luce, it's gorgeous!" Kara gushes as she admires the inside of the new house. "And you can see our apartment from here, which means when I run out of food, I can just come borrow some."</p><p>"Oh hell, Nia what did we get ourselves into?" Lucy whispers to her wife and Kara laughs her evil laugh that she knows her best friend finds creepy.</p><p>"There's no escaping me now!" The blonde lunges at her best friend and latches onto her like a koala.</p><p>"Lena, come get your pet koala please. No animals allowed in the new house." Lucy tries to pry her friend off of her, but Kara is latched on very tight. Lena and Nia just laugh at Lucy’s current predicament. Anyone watching their exchange would probably think they were in middle school and not two grown adults.</p><p>"C'mon Kara the Koala." Lena snakes an arm around her wife's waist and tries to carefully unlatch Kara from Lucy.</p><p>Seconds later, they hear another knock at the door and Nia opens it to find Alex and Maggie. They are both carrying two boxes of pizza each and everyone's mouth waters at the sight of the food.</p><p>"Sanvers!" Kara yells when she sees the couple and runs over to the door so she can wrap the two in a tight hug. "It's been too long."</p><p>"Sis, I saw you yesterday when you came into the restaurant for potstickers." Alex informs the blonde.</p><p>"Oh yeah. Stupid brain doesn't work right I swear. Someone should've told my attacker that things like soccer balls are meant to be kicked, not heads." The blue-eyed girl chuckles, but stops quickly when she sees the looks that she's receiving from all her friends.</p><p>"Damn, Kar. Your jokes are either corny or very dark. There's never an in-between." Lucy walks over and slings an arm across her best friend's shoulders. "We gotta work on them. I have a few good jokes I could teach you."</p><p>"Yeah I'm sure yours are real knee slappers." Kara pats the brunette’s hand that's dangling from her shoulder before interlacing their fingers.</p><p>"Well since the food is here, let's eat." Nia chimes in and every nods in agreement. Everyone laughs when Kara’s stomach growls at the mention of food.</p><p>"Alex did you bring-" Kara starts, but the older sister cuts her off.</p><p>"Potstickers. Yes, of course I did." The restaurant owner rolls her eyes and walks into the kitchen.</p><p>"What is with the sass?" Kara groans in fake annoyance. "Just making sure you remembered to bring my favorite food."</p><p>"I thought Lena was your favorite food, Kar." Lucy smirks and Lena and Kara practically choke on air.</p><p>“And all your jokes are sexual. We gotta work on them.” Kara raises an eyebrow in challenge and Lucy rolls her eyes playfully. “Too bad we have to have quieter sex now that you two practically moved into our backyard.” Kara leans over and hovers her lips over Lena’s ear. "Which is such a shame because I love the way my name sounds when you're screaming it." The blonde whispers and Lena feels her lips attach to her neck.</p><p><em>Did she literally just transition from embarrassed to sexual in a span of 3 seconds?</em> Lena thinks as she feels Kara lightly bite her neck.</p><p>"Fuck, Kara. Not here." She whispers when she makes eye contact with Lucy and the girl just shakes her head, a smirk playing on her lips.</p><p>"Later then, baby." The blonde places a tender kiss to her wife's neck before moseying on into the kitchen where Alex is setting out the pizzas.</p><p>Casual small talk is made at dinner as usual. Kara and Lena talk about their job searching, Nia and Lucy gush about the new house, and Alex and Maggie just sit quietly and listen. It's not until everyone throws their plates away and settles down in the living room on the couches that the two decide to speak up.</p><p>"We're getting married." Alex blurts out as soon as they are all seated comfortably. Maybe she should have told everyone before they got seated because once all girls hear the news, they jump back to their feet and Kara tackles her sister in a hug.</p><p>“Finally! You’ve had the ring for months!” The blonde lets go of her sister and hugs Maggie next. “Welcome to the family, Mags.”</p><p>“How did she do it?"</p><p>“Let us see the ring!”</p><p>Are just a few of the questions that spill from the other girls' mouths. Alex and Maggie just chuckle as Maggie pulls the ring from her back pocket and slips it on her finger. All the girls gush over the engagement and the ring for hours. When the clock hits midnight, everyone decides it's time to part ways.</p><p>When Kara and Lena return to their house, they spend some time with Kieran before retiring to their room for the night. After brushing her teeth, Kara settles in bed next to Lena, who is intently reading a book. The blonde admires her wife's gorgeous side profile. She watches as Lena’s eyebrows furrow slightly as she's reading the book. It is in that very moment that Kara decides she's finally ready to tell Lena something that has been on her mind for awhile now. She's not sure how she will react, but she knows Lena loves her endlessly so she hopes the green-eyed girl will be on the same page as her.</p><p>"Lee." Kara speaks up, putting an end to the comfortable silence between them.</p><p>"Hmm." The green-eyed girl hums, her eyes still trained on the paper back book in her hands.</p><p>"I want to have a baby."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0043"><h2>43. Chapter 43</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Nope, not him." Lena turns the page in the book and Kara huffs. They've been flipping through a book looking for a potential sperm donor for nearly 3 hours. Luckily, the clinic they are at isn't charging them this visit.</p>
<p>"Really, Lena? What's wrong with him?" Kara asks as she flips the page back and studies the guy. "He is good-looking and is in great health."</p>
<p>"He has brown eyes, darling." Lena says simply as if Kara should know why she's saying no.</p>
<p>"I like brown eyes they are-" The blonde starts, but is immediately interrupted by her wife.</p>
<p>"I want him to have blue eyes that look identical to yours." Lena studies her wife's side profile with a smile on her face. "I mean I know I'll be in trouble if our kid has blue eyes because your ocean eyes make it impossible for me to say no to you. So our child will definitely get everything they want from me."</p>
<p>"Well what if I wanted our first kid to have green eyes?" Kara counters, her heart still fluttering from Lena’s compliments.</p>
<p>"When I carry our second child, I promise I'll let you choose a donor with green eyes, baby." The green-eyed girl leans over and places a kiss to her wife's soft cheek.</p>
<p>"Okay deal. I'll be looking for a blue-eyed man." Kara gives in to Lena and the brunette claps her hands. Kara flips through a couple of more pages. "What about him? He has blue eyes."</p>
<p>"He has brown hair though." Lena counters.</p>
<p>Kara sighs and continues to flip through the book. "Feeling picky today are we?" She jokes. She knows Lena is basically looking for a clone of her. Slightly tan skin, blonde hair, and light eyes.</p>
<p>"This is our first kid, darling, and I want a guy that will almost guarantee that I will have a mini version of you running around the house." Lena says sweetly and Kara swoons.</p>
<p>"Next time, I get to be the picky one." Kara leans in and pecks her wife's lips briefly before turning her attention back to the task at hand. She flips about 20 more pages before she finally lands on a guy with blonde hair, light blue eyes, a very chiseled jaw line, and a contagious smile. Although looks aren't what is most important to the two women, he still catches their eye. "Damn his jaw line could cut me in half."</p>
<p>"The eyes are a perfect match." Lena beams. "Lets read up on him." She squints over Kara’s shoulder to look at his bio. "Above average IQ, comes from a healthy background, and it says that his friends all say he is sensitive and kind-hearted."</p>
<p>"I like him." Kara smiles as she reads more about the man.</p>
<p>"I love that his hair is a little curly too." Lena says as she studies the picture of the guy.</p>
<p>"So do I." Kara says with a smile. "Have we agreed on one then?"</p>
<p>"I think we have." Lena looks up from the book and into Kara’s excited eyes.</p>
<p>"We are really doing this aren't we, babe?" The blonde feels butterflies flood her stomach at the thought of raising a family with the beautiful woman sitting next to her.</p>
<p>"I mean we do have a few more steps, but yes, darling. We are going to have a baby." Lena reaches up and cups Kara’s face in her hands. "I just want you to know that I'm committed to this child. I know there's not even a baby inside of you yet, but I'm already so in love with the little human that will be in your stomach soon."</p>
<p>"I love you so much." Kara closes the distance between them and captures Lena’s lips in a searing kiss.</p>
<hr/>
<p>A week later, Kara and Lena head back to the clinic. This time, they won't just be flipping through donors, but Kara will be inseminated with the donor's sperm.</p>
<p>"Darling, your grip is a little tight." Lena hisses as she studies her hand that is clasped in Kara’s.</p>
<p>"Sorry. I'm just nervous." The blue-eyed girl jerks her hand away and starts biting at her nails. Lena hates this nervous habit of hers, so she gently takes the hand back in her own and strokes it soothingly. "It's just all happening so... soon."</p>
<p>"Well the doctors said we could've waited until next month, but since you were ovulating this week it was the perfect time. Are you having second thoughts?" Lena tries to read Kara’s expression. The blue-eyed girl looks over at her wife and her eyes soften.</p>
<p>"No, I'm okay. I'm ready." Kara nods her head in confirmation. "It's just a big life step, you know? And those always make me nervous as heck."</p>
<p>"I understand, darling. Just remember that I'm here every step of the way with you though." Lena leans forward and plants a kiss to the side of her wife's head. About a second later, a doctor walks in with a smile on her face. Both girls listen intently as the doctor tells them exactly what she's about to do. Once she's finished, she leans Kara back in the chair, guides her legs open, and pulls the insemination tool from the tray. Lena fights back a smile as she watches Kara’s eyes widen. She quickly puts her hand on her face and gently guides her head until she's looking at her.</p>
<p>"Boy or girl? Which are you hoping for?" Lena asks, trying to distract her wife from the procedure.</p>
<p>Kara just shrugs. "Either honestly. Just as long as he or she is healthy. That's all that matters."</p>
<p>Lena's heart swells at her wife's words. "You have any names in mind?" She rubs her thumb back and forth across her wife's soft cheek.</p>
<p>"I really like Lexy for a girl because it’s short for Alexandra and I would love to name her after my sister. Not sure about a boy name yet." Kara responds.</p>
<p>“Lexy is a beautiful name." The green-eyed girl looks down to see the doctor pulling off her gloves.</p>
<p>"All finished." She announces and Kara whips her head back to face her.</p>
<p>"Wait really?" The blonde asks. Truth be told, she really didn't feel anything. She looks back at Lena with a smirk on her face. "Thanks for distracting me."</p>
<p>Once Kara is released from the clinic, the girls drive back to their apartment. They both agree that they could use a nap after the day they've had. However, when they get to their place and open the front door, they see that their friends have different plans for them.</p>
<p>“The parents to be!" Lucy squeals and runs to the two women with her arms wide open. Lena and Kara allow the brunette to pull them into a bone crushing hug. "I can't believe I'm going to be an aunt!" Both girls chuckle as they look around the room. They see Nia, Alex, Maggie, Sam, James, Ruby, and Andrea staring back at them. Kara notices the decorations all around the house. Such as the banner that reads "Congratulations On Conceiving" and all the baby decor.</p>
<p>"Luce, I'm not pregnant yet." Kara states the obvious and Lucy pulls back and rolls her eyes.</p>
<p>"And you won't ever be with that negative mindset." Lucy scoffs.</p>
<p>"Not being negative. Just stating the obvious. I literally just got inseminated hours ago." Kara shrugs her shoulders. She watches as Lucy drops to her knees so that she is eye level with her stomach.</p>
<p>"Aunty Lucy loves you." The brunette whispers to the non existent baby bump and then plants a kiss to Kara’s belly. The blonde looks to her wife for help explaining to Lucy that there's a chance the insemination could not work and leave Kara not pregnant.</p>
<p>"Lucy, you know there's a chance the procedure could not work right?" Lena raises an eyebrow in question.</p>
<p>"There's always a chance things might not work out. There's always a chance that our dreams may not come true. I just choose to spend my life thinking about what could go right instead of what could go wrong. You two should too. You'll live a happier life if you choose to always try to stay positive and think positive thoughts." Lucy stands back to her feet and looks at the two girls seriously. "You two are going to be moms and this party is to celebrate that. No, this particular procedure may not make you parents, but maybe the next one will. The thing is, I know you two and I know neither of you give up on what you want. You've decided you want to start of family, so you will both do everything in your power to make that happen. So today, we are celebrating the fact that your family will be expanding in the near future."</p>
<p>Kara feels tears hit her cheeks after hearing Lucy’s words and she launches herself at her best friend. Lucy catches her and places her arms under Kara’s legs when the girl wraps them around her waist in a koala hug.</p>
<p>"Our kid will be so lucky to have you as an aunt, Luce." Kara buries her head into her best friend's neck.</p>
<p>"Damn right." Lucy chuckles cockily and Kara laughs through her tears as she lowers herself back down to the ground.</p>
<p>"You literally just went from sweet to arrogant in a span of 5 seconds." The blonde wipes at her eyes and Lucy just shrugs.</p>
<p>"I can't stay sweet for too long. I have a sassy reputation to uphold." The brunette smirks and walks off to where her wife is standing. Nia kisses her on the cheek and wraps an arm around her waist.</p>
<p>"You're sweet 24/7 to me though." Nia states.</p>
<p>"Duh. You're my queen." Lucy turns her head to the side and places a kiss to the side of Nia’s head.</p>
<p>The rest of the night, all the girls, and James, celebrate Kara and Lena’s huge milestone. They eat pizza, cake, and the girls even open the baby presents that everyone brought them. Lucy makes sure to let them know that they will throw them a proper baby shower after they know the sex of the baby. Once they are finished with presents and food, they all settle in the living room and just talk. Kara lays her head on Lena’s shoulder as she sits on the couch, surrounded by her best friends. The blonde watches with a smile on her face as Lucy tells a story, very animatedly of course. Kara looks around at each person in the room and feels a sense of gratitude that each of them are in her life.</p>
<p>The blue-eyed girl lays her hand on her stomach. She hopes more than anything that a baby is being made in there right now. She told Lucy not to get her hopes up, but the truth is, hers are already up so high and she's already so in love with the baby that hopefully will be inside her soon. As if sensing that Kara is thinking about the baby, Lena places her hand on top of Kara’s that's resting on her stomach. When the blonde feels a hand rest on hers, she looks into green eyes and feels an overwhelming sense of calmness come over her.</p>
<p>Lucy’s right.</p>
<p>They are both fighters and always fight for what they want. Even if this procedure doesn't work, they are not giving up until they have a baby of their own.</p>
<p>A perfect little blue-eyed baby of their own.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0044"><h2>44. Chapter 44</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Lucy, seriously? I'm supposed to be meeting with a lady tonight about a building downtown that I could potentially turn into an art gallery and you want me to cancel so I can go get drinks with you, Nia, and Alex?" Lena asks the brunette incredulously and Lucy just shrugs.</p>
<p>Lena had heard some rustling around in her kitchen around lunchtime today and walked out of her bedroom to find the brunette sitting at their table, eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She claimed that they were out of groceries at her place and that she was starved. Lena and Kara are both used to it by now. Lucy stole one of their keys and had herself a key to their place made so basically the girl just comes and goes as she pleases.</p>
<p>"Well going out with your friends and getting drunk sounds like a hell of a lot more fun to me. Just tell the lady that you got sick and need to reschedule for another day this week." She propositions while grabbing another chip from the bag and popping it into her mouth. Lena snatches the chips away and puts them back into the cabinet before Lucy can eat the whole bag. </p>
<p>It's been a few weeks since the get together at Kara and Lena’s house and everyone has been insanely busy so no one has had time to see each other. Lena has still been scouring National City for a potential building to turn into an art studio, Kara has been job hunting, and the other girls have been busy with their jobs. So it isn't surprising to Lena in the slightest that Lucy is asking her to hang out.</p>
<p>"Okay, okay you win. I'll reschedule and meet you at the bar tonight. I don't know if Kara can come or not because I know she has two job interviews today and then tonight she has a meeting with some lady that she's paying to help her make her resume better." Lena frowns slightly and Lucy just nods.</p>
<p>"Well I'm sad Kar can't come, but I guess you’ll do." The brunette jokes and Lena playfully swats at her arm. The green-eyed girl pulls out her phone and sends a quick text to Kara saying that she's going to reschedule with the real estate agent because their friends are pressuring her to go get drinks instead.</p>
<p>She smiles when she gets an immediate text back that says, <em>Have fun with the girls baby. Wish I could be there. Love you.</em></p>
<p>Once Lena finishes her lunch and shoos Lucy out of her place, she calls the lady to tell her she will have to reschedule. However, when the lady offers to meet her at the property now instead of later in the afternoon, Lena agrees.</p>
<p>As soon as she steps into the building that's located in a perfect spot in downtown National City, she falls in love. She spends a few hours looking around and asking the lady questions, but deep down, she knows this is it. This is the place she wants to turn into an art gallery. After signing some paperwork that makes her the owner of the space, she drives back to her place with a smile on her face. Kieran greets her at the door and Lena spends some time playing with the dog before she heads to the bedroom she shares with Kara and starts getting ready for the night. Lucy suggested they meet at the bar around 7 since three out of the four of them have work early tomorrow.</p>
<p>"Well I guess now I have work tomorrow too." Lena says excitedly to Kieran, who is laying on their bed sleeping while she gets ready. "I have an art gallery to decorate." She whispers excitedly. The only response she gets from Kieran is a soft snore, which makes her chuckle. After applying her final touch of make up, red lipstick, she grabs her keys and drives to the bar. When she arrives, all the girls are already sitting at the bar gossiping, a drink in each of their hands.</p>
<p>"Luthor! Get your pale ass over here and tell the bartender what you want. I'm buying first round." Lucy waves her over and Lena rolls her eyes at her loud friend. When she makes it over to the group, she gives them each a hug and then sits down on a bar stool next to Lucy.</p>
<p>"How about some live music, yeah?" Lena hears a male voice ask and the small bar erupts in cheers. Just as he says that, the bartender returns with her drink and Lena takes a sip of whiskey.</p>
<p>"Long time no see, National City." Lena hears a familiar voice echo through the bar and she spins around on her stool so fast that she almost gives herself whiplash. Her heart starts beating rapidly in her chest when her eyes land on her gorgeous wife. She's wearing a bomber jacket with a white shirt under it and blue jean shorts. She's balancing her guitar on her lap, a soft smile on her features. "I actually only have one song I want to sing before I join my amazing friends and beautiful wife for a night out."</p>
<p>"Did you know she'd be here?" Lena leans over and whispers to Lucy and the brunette nods her head.</p>
<p>"She told me I needed to bring you all here tonight. I have no idea what she's got planned though." Lucy takes another sip of her drink and they all turn their attention back to the blonde on the stage.</p>
<p>"If you know this one, which most of you do, sing along." Kara says before she starts strumming the guitar.</p>
<p>
  <em>Oh, oh, oh</em><br/>
<em>Oh, oh, oh</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>You were in college, working part-time, waiting tables</em><br/>
<em>Left a small town, never looked back</em><br/>
<em>I was a flight risk, with a fear of fallin'</em><br/>
<em>Wondering why we bother with love, if it never lasts</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I say, "Can you believe it?"</em><br/>
<em>As we're lyin' on the couch</em><br/>
<em>The moment, I can see it</em><br/>
<em>Yes, yes, I can see it now</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Do you remember, we were sittin', there by the water?</em><br/>
<em>You put your arm around me for the first time</em><br/>
<em>You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter</em><br/>
<em>You are the best thing, that's ever been mine</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Flash forward, and we're takin' on the world together</em><br/>
<em>And there's a drawer of my things at your place</em><br/>
<em>You learn my secrets and you figure out why I'm guarded</em><br/>
<em>You say we'll never make my parents' mistakes</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>And we got bills to pay</em><br/>
<em>We got a baby on the way</em><br/>
<em>When it was hard to take</em><br/>
<em>Yes, yes</em><br/>
<em>This is what I thought about</em>
</p>
<p>Nia, Lucy, and Alex gasp while Lena chokes on the sip of whiskey she just took right before Kara sang that particular line that is not part of the original song. Lucy pats her on the back, but Lena waves her off and gives her a thumbs up showing that she's fine. Not seconds later, Lena pulls her attention from the beautiful blonde on the stage when she feels a tap on her shoulder. She turns around and sees the bartender offering her a bottle. She takes the bottle in her hands and reads the label.</p>
<p>
  <em>Drink this for me. I won't be able to for 9 more months. YOU'RE GOING TO BE A MOM! Now come kiss me.</em>
</p>
<p>Tears cloud Lena’s vision and she covers her mouth with her free hand. She keeps reading the words over and over again until Lucy grabs the bottle from her hand. The brunette squeals loudly and soon after, Nia and Alex do too.</p>
<p>"You're going to be a mom, Luthor!" Lucy wraps her up in a hug and Lena lets out a sound that's a mix between a laugh and a sob. The other girls join the hug and offer up a million congratulations.</p>
<p>
  <em>Do you remember, we were sittin' there, by the water?</em>
  <br/>
  <em>You put your arm around me, for the first time</em>
  <br/>
  <em>You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter</em>
  <br/>
  <em>You are the best thing, that's ever been mine</em>
</p>
<p>When Kara strums the last note, Lena stands up from her bar stool and makes her way to the stage. When she gets to the side of it, Kara has already put the guitar down and is sitting on the stool with a wide smile on her face and tears in her eyes.</p>
<p>"You're- ... we're- ... Is this really happening?" Lena stumbles over her words, her voice thick with emotion.</p>
<p>Kara reaches into the side of her jacket pocket and pulls out a pregnancy test. She holds the test out to Lena and the brunette grabs it and studies it. She sees that is has a plus sign on it. "And before you ask if I'm sure sure..." She reaches in her jacket pocket and pulls out 4 more sticks. Lena takes them all and looks at each one of them.</p>
<p>All plus signs.</p>
<p>Lena looks back up at Kara, both have tears rolling down their cheeks and smiles on their faces. "We're having a baby, Lena. We're pregnant."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0045"><h2>45. Chapter 45</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"So why is Kara sleeping on our couch?" Lucy raises her eyebrow at the green-eyed girl and Lena just buries her face in her hands.</p>
<p>"Literally everything has been great up until this week. This week has literally been a roller coaster." Lena sighs.</p>
<p>"Walk me through it." Lucy says as she ushers Lena over to the couch. Kara is still sleeping at their house so Lucy took it upon herself to go over to Lena and Kara’s place to talk to the green-eyed girl.</p>
<p>"Okay so it started on Tuesday night..."</p>
<p>
  <em>"Lee." Lena hears a voice whisper in her ear. She groans and then opens her eyes to look at the bedside clock.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>1:00 am</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"I'm so sorry to wake you, but my stomach won't stop growling. I'm so hungry, but we don't have anything to eat." Kara says and right on cue her stomach starts growling loudly.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Kara, I'm sure if you go back to sleep that you won't be hungry anymore. I have a big day at the art gallery tomorrow. I really need sleep." Lena rolls over and faces her wife. Her first mistake because Kara’s eyes are pleading and she has the cutest pout on her face.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"I just really really want some bananas." The pregnant blonde says innocently and Lena huffs. The brunette throws the cover off her and walks to the bedroom door. She slides on her shoes and grabs her car keys from the dresser.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Thank you, babe." Kara claps her hands giddily and Lena fights back a smile.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Yeah, yeah. You better never question my love for you." Lena yells over her shoulder as she makes her way to the door.</em>
</p>
<p>"Well it doesn't sound like much happened?" Lucy questions.</p>
<p>"Yeah well that was just what started the bad week I guess. If I don't get a good night's sleep I get kind of angry and then building this art gallery has kind of been stressing me out." Lena plays with her fingers.</p>
<p>"And you took your anger and stress out on Kara, didn't you?" Lucy raises an eyebrow knowingly and Lena keeps looking down. "Damn it, Luthor. Well go ahead and tell me about the next day. Tell me what happened."</p>
<p>"Okay so on Wednesday..."</p>
<p>
  <em>"Hey baby, what are you doing here?" Lena stands up from her desk when Kara walks in her still under construction office.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Kara doesn't say anything, she just shuts the door behind her, sets her purse on a cabinet, and walks over to her wife. She grabs her by the collar of her shirt and pulls her in for an eager kiss. Lena doesn't question what's gotten into Kara, she just kisses her back. The blonde breaks the kiss long enough to hoist herself up onto Lena’s desk. As soon as she's sitting, she pulls her wife back in for a kiss. Kara strips her wife of her blazer and starts unbuttoning her blouse. However, Lena gently grabs her wandering hands and breaks the kiss.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"What are you doing, darling?" Lena looks into her wife's lust-filled eyes.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"I'm so horny, Lee. I need you." Kara tries to free her hands from Lena’s grasp so she can continue her pursuit of undressing her wife.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Kara, the interior designers will be here literally any minute to finish up." Lena says as she eyes the door nervously.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"We can be quick." Kara whispers seductively. Once Lena lets go of her wife's hands, Kara starts trying to unbutton her wife’s dress pants.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Kara, this will have to wait until I get home. I'm sorry, but it would look unprofessional if the interior designers walked in on us having sex." The green-eyed girl takes a step back from her wife and runs a hand through her dark hair.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"I don't know if I can wait." Kara grabs at Lena’s blouse and untucks it from her pants.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Just fucking stop, Kara!" Lena throws her hands in the air and Kara slides off the desk and takes a step back from her when she sees the anger in her eyes. "My career is really important to me and I'm already not in the best mindset today since I only got like 3 hours of sleep last night." The brunette sighs and Kara’s bottom lip starts quivering.</em>
</p>
<p><em>"I'll leave you alone. I'm sorry that I've been screwing things up for you." The blue-eyed girl wipes the tears away from her cheeks and walks back to the door.</em> </p>
<p>
  <em>"Kara, wait. I'm sorry." Lena steps around her desk and follows her wife.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Me too." Kara grabs her purse and opens the door. When the door opens, Lena sees the interior designers walking in the gallery.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Kar..." Lena tries to apologize one last time, but her wife slips out of the door and leaves before she can get another word out.</em>
</p>
<p>"Ooh you done fucked up big time." Lucy shakes her head at her friend. "And this is only day two of your story."</p>
<p>"I know, I know." Lena props her elbows on her knees and buries her face in her hands. "I feel like pure shit."</p>
<p>"You know I love you, but you should feel like pure shit. Not only did you deny your pregnant wife sex, but you also made her feel bad about her pregnancy cravings." The brunette says pointedly.</p>
<p>"I know, I'm the actual worst." The green-eyed girl sighs.</p>
<p>"Now let's hear the next thing you did." Lucy crosses her arms and Lena rests her chin in her hands.</p>
<p>"Okay so on Thursday..."</p>
<p>
  <em>"Thanks for meeting me for lunch, darling." Lena reaches across the table and takes one of Kara’s hands in her own. The green-eyed girl is glad that her wife forgave her for what happened yesterday in the gallery. When Lena got home from work that night, Kara was already sleeping soundly in their bed, so Lena didn't wake her.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"I'm always hungry. I'm eating for two, remember?" Kara places her free hand on her tiny baby bump. "So how is decorating the art gallery coming?"</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"It's great. One of the interior designers made a sketch of what they picture the place looking like and it looks beautiful. I hope that when it's all finished that it'll be a big success." Lena gushes and Kara smiles softly while she listens. The young blonde loves to hear her wife talk about things she's passionate about. She absolutely loves watching her green eyes glisten with excitement.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Here is your glass of red wine. You told me to just surprise you with my favorite, so I did. Pinot Noir." A stunning redheaded server sets a glass of wine in front of the brunette and Lena takes a sip of it and moans.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"That is good stuff. You have amazing taste, Shelly." Lena praises the server and Kara narrows her eyes at her wife.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"So I've been told." Shelly winks at Lena and Kara clears her throat rather loudly. "So have you two decided what you'd like to eat?" Lena quickly picks up her menu.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Shit. I haven't even looked at the menu. I'm sorry." Her eyes scan over the menu quickly.</em>
</p>
<p><em>"No rush at all. Take all the time you need." The server bats her eyelashes at the green-eyed girl and smirks.</em> </p>
<p>
  <em>"You're the best. Thank you." Lena offers her a warm smile.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"My wife could probably figure out what she wants to eat quicker if she doesn't have someone hovering over her." Kara plasters a fake smile on her face and narrows her eyes at the redhead.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"Yeah um sorry about that." The girl clears her throat as she quickly walks in the opposite direction of where they are sitting.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"What was all that about?" Lena inquires and Kara avoids looking at the disappointed green eyes in front of her.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"She was flirting with you literally right in front of me and you seemed to be enjoying it." Kara busies herself with smoothing out the napkin in her lap.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"She may have been flirting, but I didn't even notice. I can assure you, I was just being polite." The brunette quickly defends her actions.</em>
</p>
<p><em>"You know, I kind of lost my appetite and you should probably get back to the gallery." Kara throws the napkin down on the table and stands up.</em> </p>
<p>
  <em>"This is absurd, Kara." Lena reaches for her wife's hand, but Kara jerks it out of her reach and heads for the exit before Lena can see her cry. "Kara!"</em>
</p>
<p>"And then when I got home that afternoon from work, I noticed she had packed a bag and was gone." Lena sighs and looks down at her hands again. "Then you texted me and let me know she was safe with you and I decided to give us both a night apart so we could cool down."</p>
<p>Lucy reaches over and slaps Lena upside the head.</p>
<p>"What the hell?" The green-eyed girl looks wide-eyed at her friend.</p>
<p>"You both don't need to 'cool down' you dummy. You need to talk it out." Lucy stands up and paces in front of Lena. "That woman, she is carrying your child Lena. Your baby is inside of her, so of course she's going to be acting all kinds of crazy. It's called pregnancy hormones, you idiot. I have seen enough movies to know that if your spouse is pregnant, you should let that woman do whatever the hell she wants and say whatever the hell she wants. If she literally punches you in the face, you should thank her. If she runs you over with her car, you should thank her. She has endured losing her figure, morning sickness, and mood-swings for this child. Your body has not had to go through anything." The brunette stops her pacing and looks Lena right in the eyes. "That child is literally about to rip her vagina apart and if it doesn't, the doctors will cut her stomach open and take it out of her. You should be doing everything in your power to make sure she feels happy and loved right now because that woman, your wife, is a fucking superhero."</p>
<p>"I have to go to the store. I fucked up." Lena stands up abruptly and heads for the door.</p>
<p>"The store?" Lucy quirks an eyebrow.</p>
<p>"Yes, Lucy, the store. And then I have a few more stops to make as well. I need to buy all the flowers, chocolates, potstickers, ice-cream, and teddy bears that this city has. I fucked up." Lena opens the door and turns to look at Lucy, her eyes sad and guilty.</p>
<p>"You did, but something tells me Kar will forgive you." Lucy walks over to her friend and pulls her into a hug. "I love you, Luthor. Even if you are a naive dumbass 98 percent of the time."</p>
<p>After buying the store out of all the chocolates, bananas, ice-cream, and teddy bears they could find, the two girls head to grab some potstickers. Once they are good on food, they make a pit stop at a flower shop and then head back to Lucy and Nia’s house.</p>
<p>"You got this, Luthor." Lucy offers her friend a reassuring smile before knocking on the door with her foot rather loudly. Both of their hands are full, so neither could make a move to open the door.</p>
<p>"What in the sweet hell..." Nia swings the door open and watches in confusion as her wife and friend stumble in the house with lots of bags in tow. Lena grabs a single rose, the bag of potstickers, and a box of chocolates before searching the room for her wife. "She's upstairs." Nia points to the staircase and Lena offers her a warm smile.</p>
<p>It's not hard for Lena to find the guest room, she just follows the sound of Noah Calhoun's voice and it leads her straight to her wife. Lena carefully opens the door and finds her wife curled up on the bed in her pajamas watching <em>The Notebook.</em> Since the television is close to her, Lena reaches over and turns it off.</p>
<p>"So it's not gonna be easy, it's gonna be really hard. And we're gonna have to work at this everyday, but I wanna do that because I want you. I want all of you, forever. You and me. Everyday." Lena quotes Kara’s favorite scene from the movie and watches in adoration as her wife lets out a mix between a laugh and a cry. The green-eyed girl walks over to the bed and kneels down beside it. She places the flower and food next to Kara.</p>
<p>"They didn't agree on much. In fact, they didn't agree on anything. They fought all the time and challenged each other every day. But despite their differences, they had one important thing in common. They were crazy about each other." Kara places a hand on Lena’s cheek, her thumb stroking the smooth skin underneath it. "I'm sorry this week has been a roller coaster, Lee. My emotions have been all over the place."</p>
<p>Lena just shakes her head and leans in and captures her wife's lips in her own. "Don't apologize for anything, darling. You are pregnant with our beautiful child, so it's perfectly normal for our lives to be roller coasters right now. I'm excited to be on the ride with you. I want to apologize for how I've acted this week. I've been somewhat stressed with the gallery, but I should've never brought that stress home with me or taken it out on you."</p>
<p>"I should've never tried to have sex with you at your place of work. That's some Fifty Shades of Grey type shit and it's not me. These pregnancy hormones just make me crazy horny and you looked like Blake Lively in <em>A Simple Favor</em> wearing that pantsuit and I just lost all control." Kara blushes and Lena chuckles momentarily before leaning in and kissing the blonde again.</p>
<p>"Don't ever apologize for being attracted to me, darling." The green-eyed girl whispers in between kisses. Kara pulls her onto the bed and starts tugging at her shirt.</p>
<p>"Ladies! Please for the love of god, do not have make-up sex in our guest bedroom!" Lucy yells from downstairs and Lena chuckles before standing back up from the bed and offering her hand to Kara.</p>
<p>"Let's go home." Lena says and Kara allows her wife to pull her to her feet.</p>
<p>"Finally, I'm freaking hungry." The blonde leads her wife down the stairs and to the front door.</p>
<p>"Well let me go back up and grab all the chocolates and potstickers..." Lena starts to turn back toward the stairs, but Kara keeps dragging her to the door.</p>
<p>"That's not what I'm hungry for." Kara practically growls and Lena blushes.</p>
<p>"We heard that!" Both Lucy and Nia yell in unison as they watch Kara and Lena exit their house in a hurry.</p>
<p>"I'm hungry too." Lucy wiggles her eyebrows.</p>
<p>"Baby, I'm too tired for sex tonight." Nia groans.</p>
<p>"Sex? Honey we have a counter full of ice-cream, chocolate, and potstickers that I want to eat. Get your mind out of the gutter." The brunette rolls her eyes playfully and pops open the lid on one of the ice-cream tubs. "Now grab two boxes of chocolates and follow me upstairs. I think Kara left the potstickers up here."</p>
<p>Nia grabs two boxes of chocolates and darts for the stairs. "First one upstairs gets to eat all the good chocolates out of the box!"<br/></p>
  </div></div>
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